Chapter 81, Nineteenth Cycle (3)
Of course, Rei Furuya and Kagemitsu Morofushi would also argue.
As the saying goes, the better the relationship, the easier it is to argue.
Their arguments are always quite direct, usually about trivial matters. They usually just talk it out and then it's over. It's not surprising that they'll be laughing and going out to eat together the next second.
Even in slightly more serious situations, after an argument they quickly reflect on themselves, recall the good qualities of the other person, and then immediately apologize and forgive each other.
Their purpose in arguing is not to vent their emotions, but to solve problems.
Moreover, for various reasons, although Morofushi Kagemitsu is the type of person who doesn't confide in others and is very reserved, Furuya Rei is also an overly serious and somewhat arrogant person.
But when it comes to each other, they are completely honest and close, never hesitant to express their feelings, and are very clear about their place in each other's hearts.
Having lost their parents and family at a young age, and being ostracized for being mixed-race and isolated for having aphasia, they had few friends during their childhood. For them, who had grown up together, each other's existence was far more important than any adjective in the world.
Thus, their relationship improved time and time again through these arguments, resolving almost all the conflicts they had faced in their lives up to that point.
Even now, there is almost no friction between the two childhood friends who grew up together.
Especially after experiencing a series of life-or-death crises, their tolerance for most things is ridiculously high.
The only problem was that they argued even more fiercely about worrying about each other.
Morofushi Kagemitsu crossed his arms and said seriously, "I will absolutely not agree to this plan. I don't need his excessive protection. Does he really think I can stay in the sunlight under his protection and become an ordinary policeman, watching him go on his own adventures and end up getting injured or even dying somewhere without me knowing? Does he think I'm that kind of person? Do you think so too?"
Kenji Hagiwara immediately shook his head frantically: "Of course not! I also think Furuya's plan is a bit excessive. He only considered your safety without properly considering your feelings, let alone his own safety and feelings. I don't agree with this plan either. But I can actually understand him, and of course, that's not what he meant. He's just too worried about you. After all, what he said makes sense..."
Morofushi Kagemitsu frowned and turned his head: "The biggest misunderstanding he's making is that we agreed to always support each other and work hard together, but now he wants to abandon me and bear everything alone. That's too much. Class monitor, tell Zero that I will absolutely not agree to this plan. If he brings this up again, I'll really get angry."
Date Wataru immediately ran over and conveyed Morofushi Kagemitsu's message to Furuya Rei.
Rei Furuya said, "Am I wrong? Having gone undercover twice, I'm very experienced. I can organize an undercover operation on my own until the end, even for seven years, no problem. I'm confident. It's very easy for me. But this is completely different for Hiro, and there's no need for him at all. He can be an ordinary policeman on the surface of the Public Security Bureau and then become his assistant in secret, just like Kazami. Wouldn't that allow him to understand my situation and fight alongside me?"
Matsuda Jinpei nodded and then shook his head: "What you said makes sense. Theoretically speaking, it is indeed the optimal solution, but you should also be well aware of the emotional issues involved. No matter how strong you are, you are still a human being. Neither Mr. Jing nor we can completely let you bear all the dangers and pressures and infiltrate the Black Organization alone. Even the police can't fully understand your situation and provide timely rescue. Don't argue, don't you have enough criminal records? If something happens to you, and we can only helplessly wait for news, it's only natural that Mr. Jing would be angry."
Rei Furuya sighed: "Actually, I know he'll definitely be angry and disagree, but I'm also very determined in my decision. This time, according to my plan, we might be able to skip directly to Matsuda's level. Once the game is saved, there's no going back. This is the only chance. Class President, go tell Hiro that I'm not giving up on this plan."
Date Wataru ran over again, looking miserable, to convey Furuya Rei's message to Morofushi Kagemitsu.
Morofushi Hiromitsu's blue eyes widened in anger: "What confidence does he have? He'll definitely act recklessly on his own. Without our supervision, who knows how desperate he'll go? Why can't he trust and rely on us? Am I really that unreliable and useless in his eyes? I went undercover not just for Zero. Haven't I made any contributions to the country? Did I perform poorly and hold Zero back during my previous undercover work?"
Kenji Hagiwara quickly patted his shoulder to comfort him: "Morofushi, Morofushi, you're too excited. How could Furuya think that way? Of course I believe you will definitely complete the mission well. Besides, his personality of always wanting to leave us aside and take on everything by himself is really not good. Let's talk to him together and not be angry."
Date Wataru ran back seriously and told Furuya Rei about Morofushi Kagemitsu's reaction and questions.
Rei Furuya's eyes widened, and he turned around abruptly, speaking rapidly, "How could I think that? Hiro is of course amazing! He's helped me so much and made huge contributions to the country! His performance was perfect! His identity being exposed wasn't his fault! And because of him, I've felt much more at ease. Many times, I was able to stay calm and persevere because Hiro was by my side... But for more time together and a better life in the future, these seven years are worth enduring, right? No matter what, I don't want him to die while he's undercover. That's more important than anything else. Doesn't he understand that? Do you all feel the same way?"
Matsuda Jinpei sighed: "To be honest, I'm conflicted. I think you're right, and I also want to increase Master Jing's chances of survival. However, I also understand Master Jing very well, and I'm worried about you getting into trouble. I even want to have a good fight with you to teach you a lesson for being too arrogant."
Date Wataru nodded in agreement with Matsuda Jinpei, then ran back to tell Morofushi Kagemitsu.
After being showered with praise, Morofushi Kagemitsu paused for a moment before continuing, "But his desire not to let me die, not to let me suffer or endure hardship, is the same as my desire not to let him die, not to let him suffer or endure so much hardship."
Kenji Hagiwara smiled helplessly, "We feel the same way. We don't want anything to happen to either of you, so can we make up?"
Ida Ko deliberately made an exaggerated expression and said, "If you two don't make up soon, I, the messenger, will be exhausted."
Morofushi Kagemitsu and Furuya Rei exchanged a glance from a distance, but neither moved. No matter what, he disagreed with the plan.
Compared to infiltrating the Black Organization with Zero and walking on thin ice every day, it was much harder for him to accept watching Zero alone in the sunlight, unsure of what he was going through in the darkness, and feeling anxious and regretful every day.
The thought of being worse off than death is more terrifying than death itself, and he can accept his own death more than the death of someone important to him.
Morofushi Kagemitsu was used to it. He had spent most of his life in bloodshed and fear. Before he dealt with Tomokazu, he lived in anger and sorrow. After he dealt with Tomokazu, he was often haunted by nightmares of his childhood friend’s repeated deaths.
However, he was never afraid of dying.
From the day he watched his parents being killed while he could only stiffly hide in the closet, unable to move, his greatest fear was not dying himself, but watching the important people around him die. He even hated his own weakness and powerlessness.
So he wants to become stronger, to become a police officer and save more people.
As long as Zero is by his side, and as long as his brother is still alive and working as a policeman, he can do anything and will not be afraid of anything.
So he simply stared at the blond youth from a distance, expressing his refusal with a firm and unwavering body and expression.
It was Rei Furuya who moved first.
He ran over to Morofushi Kagemitsu and said earnestly, "Hiro, you really have to believe me this time. I promise I won't get into any more trouble. I can guarantee I'll take good care of myself, eat and sleep well, and try my best not to get hurt or die. But your situation with Matsuda is really difficult this time. If we don't use this method, I don't have the confidence to save you both from death at the same time."
He softened his tone and explained slowly, "The system has been quiet for a long time, but it will definitely not remain quiet forever. No matter how you look at it, four years from now will be a point full of malice and huge traps. Not only me, but Hiro and everyone else can't accept the result that one person dies and one person lives, and that once the data is saved, the person can't be brought back, right?"
“But even if one of us really dies, don’t you still have a spot to be resurrected?” Morofushi Kagemitsu said.
"But we don't know if that revival spot is reliable at all. What if it's a scam? What if there are serious side effects?" Furuya Rei said seriously.
“But it’s even more unreliable to let you shoulder everything alone.” Morofushi Kagemitsu frowned and raised his voice, “Zero, you need to understand one thing: the system isn’t targeting us, it’s targeting you. The existence of the world and the system is beyond imagination; it’s simply not something humans can completely fight against, let alone you alone. Have you forgotten how many dangers you’ve faced and how many times you’ve died?”
Rei Furuya knew his childhood friend so well; his eyelids twitched as he tried to stop him, but it was too late.
Morofushi Hiromitsu turned to the three quiet people beside him and said in a deep voice, "Zero lied to you. The number of times he reloaded his save file during his time at the police academy was not 1, but a full 12! He died 12 times!"
Hagiwara Kenji: "???"
Kenji Hagiwara couldn't sit still any longer, instantly bristling and raising his voice: "He already reloaded his save file 12 times during his time at the police academy?! Add my 5 times, and the 1 time he did as an undercover agent, that's at least 18 times!!!"
Matsuda Jinpei and Date Wataru, whose minds had just gone blank from being hit by a bomb, suddenly turned around: "What!?"
"You bastard!" Matsuda Jinpei stepped forward and grabbed Furuya Rei by the collar. "You've died eighteen times already?! And you kept it from us???"
Morofushi Kagemitsu was stunned for several seconds before he came to his senses. He looked at Furuya Rei with an unprecedented disbelief: "Zero...you actually lied to me about the specific number of reincarnations?"
Jianggu Ling: "..."
Oh no, this is a complete disaster.
With a dark expression, Date Wataru pulled Matsuda Jinpei back from punching him, then turned to look seriously at the somewhat dazed Hagiwara Kenji and Morofushi Kagemitsu: "Furuya has too many past offenses. Don't hide things from us like this next time, otherwise no one will know what he's been through, and we won't know if something really happens."
Morofushi Kagemitsu and Hagiwara Kenji nodded seriously with terrifying expressions.
Date Wataru then turned to look at Furuya Rei: "Furuya."
Rei Furuya obediently admitted his mistake: "I'm sorry, I know I was wrong."
"But you'll do it again next time, right?" Date Wataru frowned.
Rei Furuya shook his head frantically: "No, really, I only acted that way before because I didn't understand anything about anything."
He said earnestly to the group, "But now I have a very clear understanding of the system and the world, which is completely different from the situation before when I was feeling my way across the river in the dark."
Zhu Fujingguang said expressionlessly, "But as you just said, the system has been quiet for a long time. There will definitely be even greater malice and traps waiting for you. It's impossible for you to reach the end so easily."
Before Furuya Rei could continue, Morofushi Kagemitsu interrupted, "Zero, you should know very well, right? Your life safety and mental state are the most important. Even if something happens to us, you can reload your save to save us, but if something happens to you, we're completely finished, because we know nothing and can't do anything."
Furuya Rei nervously thought he would get even angrier, but instead he saw the black-haired youth with a cold and hard face helplessly curve his blue cat eyes, and the sharp upturned corners of his eyes softened.
Morofushi Kagemitsu took the blond youth's hand and placed it on his chest, meeting the slightly stunned purple eyes. He spoke slowly and earnestly, "Of course I trust Zero, which is why I entrust my life to you. But you don't seem to trust us much, I mean as a friend and comrade, not as someone being protected. Zero, you have to understand, I also want to fight alongside you, even if it's just a small favor, even if it's just a timely hug."
After saying that, he stepped forward and hugged the stunned Furuya Rei, proving his point with his actions.
"I'm more worried about Zero's situation than my own safety. Zero's strength doesn't conflict with my concern for you, does it?" His voice was filled with deep worry. "It's not just about you not eating or sleeping properly and getting injured or dying, but also the immense pressure you're putting on the shoulders of the entire world. But what I'm most worried about is actually the relationship between the system and the organization. Do you remember that line?"
Rei Furuya hugged him, resting his chin on his shoulder with peace of mind, and whispered, "We are both God and the devil. We want to reverse the flow of time and bring the dead back to life. This is something that both the system and the organization have said. The system and the organization are indeed related."
Morofushi Kagemitsu gently placed his hand on Morofushi Kagemitsu's smooth blond hair: "What if the system interferes and the organization discovers your wrongdoing, and they tie you up for research but don't let you die? What will you do then? There are also many, many unpredictable dangers, malicious attacks from the system and the world. How can I trust you to face everything alone?"
Rei Furuya remained silent.
The three people watching from the sidelines, Date Wataru, Hagiwara Kenji, and Matsuda Jinpei, smiled with relief, thinking that the matter could be resolved just like that, because they had also been persuaded by Morofushi Kagemitsu.
So what if it's dangerous? What isn't dangerous? We can all face it together! How can we let Rei Furuya bear everything alone? Who's really afraid of dying?
Once they've settled things with their childhood friends, they'll settle the score with Furuya Rei for being deceived.
"But let's try this method first. I have obtained all the basic information now, and I can win." Furuya Rei stubbornly insisted on his plan. "I can do it. Whether it's the system or the world, whether it's God or the devil, I am confident that I can fight them and win. I will definitely create the most perfect happy ending."
Morofushi Kagemitsu: "..."
Moribu Kagemitsu released him, took a step back, and said expressionlessly, "But you just don't have confidence that I can survive, right?"
Rei Furuya stepped forward, looking guilty, and quickly explained, "No, I just... I just wanted to choose a plan with less risk."
Morofushi Kagemitsu almost sneered: "Transfer all my risks onto you? Let's not even talk about the possibility that you'll die suddenly and have to reload your save file if the plan fails because of my decision. Just imagine if I successfully escape my undercover identity. With such a huge butterfly effect, given your perfectionist nature, how much time and energy would you have to spend controlling the intelligence of the entire organization? Are you going to work in the intelligence group, the action group, and the research group at the same time? And the public security department, how many jobs are you planning to do at the same time? Are you afraid of dying prematurely?"
Furuya Rei, who indeed had that plan: "..."
Morobuchi Kagemitsu was so angry that he turned around and left.
Rei Furuya stood still, his outstretched hand slowly falling, his head drooping like a wronged little animal with wet fur.
Date Wataru, Hagiwara Kenji, Matsuda Jinpei: "..."
The three remained as quiet as chickens.
How terrifying! Morofushi Kagemitsu is truly terrifying when he's angry; they don't dare utter a sound.
This is the first time I've seen these two argue so badly; it's really scary.
Moreover, they are not the real people involved, and during their argument, their thoughts kept shifting back and forth like weather vanes, depending on what the two of them were saying.
I feel that both of them have a point, but I also feel that neither of them is right.
Sigh, it was just a simple matter of two people caring for each other, but it turned into this because they couldn't get along.
However, to be honest, they were also on Morofushi Kagemitsu's side.
According to Matsuda Jinpei, it's a good thing he didn't beat up Furuya Rei. Why did he have to abandon everyone and shoulder everything alone? He even lied to them about the number of reincarnations—was he protecting them like dolls? Who does he think he is?
Rei Furuya, who was opposed by everyone: "..."
*
December arrived quickly, and the day soon came for Rei Furuya and Kagemitsu Morofushi to officially go undercover.
Taking advantage of the New Year's festivities and chaos, they seized the opportunity to join the Black Organization and begin their infiltration and investigation.
However, the other four people were still angry with Furuya Rei.
Date Wataru, Hagiwara Kenji, and Matsuda Jinpei were alright, but Morofushi Kagemitsu really ignored Furuya Rei no matter what he said or did, and simply increased his training volume.
It wasn't just because they discovered that Rei Furuya had concealed the specific number of times they had died and rewound, but also because Rei Furuya had never given up on his plan.
Rei Furuya completely gave up trying to persuade everyone.
He planned to secretly pull off a major operation, directly influencing the Metropolitan Police Department from the police department's side by secretly removing Morofushi Hiromitsu's name from the undercover agent training list.
The goal is to keep the risks to a minimum.
If you fail, you just have to try again.
If successful, it would mean that Hiro can indeed survive using Hagi's method, making Matsuda and the squad leader's rescue operation much simpler.
This is more important than anything else. If Hiro gets really angry, we can treat him however we want.
If people are worried, he will frequently reassure them that he is safe and sound. Once time proves that he can survive well on his own in the organization, people will probably stop worrying so much.
Moreover, Hiro was not completely excluded by him. Hiro would become his assistant in the Public Security Bureau, and they would still fight side by side. He did not abandon Hiro.
Feeling guilty, Furuya Rei repeatedly convinced himself, and his eyes gradually hardened.
*
On the other side, Morofushi Kagemitsu finished his training, picked up a cup to drink water, but his hand slipped and the cup fell to the ground.
The glass shattered with a loud bang, and water quickly spread, attracting the attention of his colleague, Yuya Kazami, who was standing nearby.
"What's wrong? Are you alright?" Kazami Yuya brought over the cleaning tools. "You seem to be spacing out a lot lately. Did something happen?"
"No..." Morifushi Kagemitsu snapped out of his daze and subconsciously reached for the things to clean up himself, but the intense unease in his heart made him unable to bear it any longer. He took out his phone and turned around, saying, "Sorry to trouble you, Kazami-senpai, I'll go make a call first!"
*
Rei Furuya paced back and forth in the room several times.
He looked at the edited email, hesitated for a moment, and then gritted his teeth and pressed the send button.
[Sent successfully]
thump--
Rei Furuya's hand trembled, and his phone fell to the ground.
He clutched his chest tightly, instantly kneeling on one knee, then quickly collapsed to the ground, curling up into a ball and trembling.
It hurts, it really hurts. It feels like my heart is being torn apart piece by piece and squeezed hard.
Is it that I can't breathe, or am I going to fail?
It seems that the deviation that could cause the world to restart is indeed about 2%.
In a daze, Rei Furuya seemed to see the phone that had fallen to the side suddenly light up, and a large character "景" appeared in the center.
It was a phone call from Morofushi Kagemitsu.
However, the owner of the phone could no longer answer it.
You are dead.
[End of 19th playthrough]
[Resulting in a Bad Ending: Too Much of a Good Thing]
[Load save/load]
【yes】
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