Chapter 17 Four Years of Longing for a Close Friend
Every text message after that one felt like a real message to me. Whenever Xiaozhenping had something she wanted to share, she would send him a text message to let him know.
Although his family was heartbroken, they gradually cheered up. He wanted to be transferred to the Major Crimes Division to personally catch the eight-egg criminal, but was repeatedly rejected by his stubborn superior. What new content was sold for his favorite model? What developments and flaws were there in the newly updated comics?
As he read through each item, it felt as if he had never left his family and friends, knowing every little detail about them: his parents had cheered him up, and his sister seemed to have some kind of ambiguous relationship with that police officer, Yokomizo Shigeo, from Kanagawa…
He knows the plot and ending of the movies and TV shows he likes and is currently watching, he knows the development of the anime he likes, he knows... the various jobs Kojinpei participates in, he knows that the eight-egg criminal sends a number to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department every year on the anniversary of his death.
Knowing that Kojinpei deduced it was a countdown, that the criminal wouldn't stop; knowing that he finally succeeded in transferring to the Major Crimes Division seven days before the countdown ended; knowing that the endless stream of cases in the Major Crimes Division refreshed his worldview about the police profession...
Knowing that he was unusually shocked by the crime and incident rates in Beika Town, knowing that there was a female police officer in the Major Crimes Division who resembled his sister and whom he admired, knowing that the day before his last text message, he and his squad leader had prevented a large explosion...
It was as if he had never left, in every little detail, just like when he had always been with Kojinpei, but Kenji Hagiwara knew very well.
The more I realize that I haven't been by my close friend's side all these years, the more I can feel how much pain and loneliness Xiao Zhenping, who sent these text messages, has endured...
And longing!
They were both Japanese and knew each other's personalities very well. Regardless of their outward personality, Japanese people have a kind of unspoken indifference and loneliness in their hearts, and sometimes this loneliness cannot be eliminated even by the presence of family members.
Only those who hold a special place in their hearts can erase this loneliness from the depths of their souls, making their lives exceptionally fulfilling. But once that special presence disappears, they become even lonelier than before.
For Kenji Hagiwara, Jinpei was an incredibly important friend who had made him feel never lonely again since they met. He also knew that Jinpei had similar thoughts.
They were the kind of people who didn't need many friends, just a few close ones. But he never imagined that one day he would disappear from his best friend's side first, making him feel a loneliness even stronger than when his father was falsely accused of murder and ostracized by his teachers and classmates in elementary school.
Sure enough... I should have followed my instincts and hit the brakes back then, and carefully considered the type of job I wanted. My luck has always been terrible; just when things seem to be going smoothly, I always encounter setbacks, much like my father's car repair business...
Just as Kenji Hagiwara was looking at his phone screen and letting out a deep sigh, a fluffy head came closer. The unkempt, messy black hair brushed against his chin.
The owner of the hair, oblivious to the situation, stared at his phone and exclaimed in surprise, "Wow! 1246 text messages, all from the same sender. This person must be as stubborn as an ox, and also very patient and persistent."
"Weren't you asleep?" Kenji Hagiwara looked at the shoulder-length short-haired woman who was about to lean into his arms, conveying his helplessness and speechlessness with his gaze.
.
Where is the Wind Star Guardian? (All)
Although she has reflected on her actions, some personality issues are not something that can be changed easily. She has always been like this, often realizing after the fact that she may have said something wrong or done something incorrectly.
Afterwards, I reflected on my mistakes and felt remorseful. I was filled with mixed emotions and resolved never to repeat them. But... as long as I thought about it, I would still fall into the same old trap without realizing it. Just like this time, even though I had just resolved to be mindful of other people's boundaries yesterday.
In a daze, I remembered that I was going to fight monsters with Hagiwara that night. I felt a light around me and thought it was time to fight monsters, so I forced myself to wake up. But when I woke up, there were no monsters. Instead, Hagiwara, who always had a smile on his face, was looking at his phone with a serious expression.
It reminded her of his expression during the dungeon during the day, so she couldn't help but curiously lean over to take a look. Unexpectedly, when she leaned over, she saw an astonishing number of text messages on the top of the phone's statistics.
At that moment, even though she couldn't understand the Japanese text message, she couldn't help but blurt out her thoughts. Then, Hagiwara gave her a somewhat helpless glare, which made her a little worried, thinking that Hagiwara was angry because he thought she had been peeking at his text messages.
He quickly explained, "I felt a light in my eyes and thought it was time to fight monsters, so I woke up. Cough cough... Don't look at me like that. I don't understand Japanese. Even if you open all my text messages for me, I still won't be able to read what's written on them."
"Fū-chan! I'm not angry that you read these text messages, it's just..." Kenji Hagiwara hurriedly replied as he watched her try to explain, but as he spoke, his complex emotions became apparent.
He was momentarily unable to articulate his reaction clearly, to tell her that he was just a little surprised and helpless, and not angry at all.
"I'm sorry, I just noticed that your expression was similar to how you looked when you saw your phone while getting water earlier today, so I was a little bothered and subconsciously looked over..." Seeing his hesitant expression, Feng Xingshou thought he was angry about his lack of boundaries.
But because she was the "car owner" and "lifesaver," she had to endure it. She felt it was her fault for making such a good-tempered person angry, so she quickly apologized. However, as she talked,
Her old habit kicked in again; completely oblivious to the concept of distance, she blurted out, "By the way, you must have been quite shocked to see the time on your phone when you got water during the day, right? I don't think you need to worry about it too much."
Since today's instance timeline can be set in 2014, maybe next time it will go back to 7 years ago. If you ask me, you should be happy. This time when we entered and exited the instance, we confirmed one thing: when you entered the instance, you went directly back to the real world.
From now on, whenever you are able to enter a instance after November 7th, 2007 (the day I brought you into this game), you can choose to stay and make up for the time you lost with your family and friends.
Looking at the person beside me who was genuinely thinking of me, and seeing the contents of these text messages, I was deeply shocked. The emotions that I had previously felt were indescribable seemed to transform into a urge to confide in them.
Kenji Hagiwara blurted out, "Kaze-chan! I was indeed shocked by the year 2014, and I thought of my family and friends, but I wasn't sad about losing time with them, but rather..."
.
He earnestly recounted to Feng Xingshou how he and Xiao Zhenping had grown up together, how they were so close that they could talk about anything, and how their relationship was so intimate that their classmates and friends in high school and college suspected they were a couple.
Then he told her that after seeing these text messages, he guessed that Kojinpei might have been acting on the advice of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.
The countdown fax received every November 7th suggests that the prisoner did not stop because of his 'death in the line of duty'.
He was still planning a new eight-egg crime, and it was even mentioned that Kojinpei might have died in the line of duty three years before 2014, in order to avenge him.
After all, in the previous text messages, Xiao Zhenping never mentioned that he felt it was wrong to keep sending text messages to his close friend who had "died in the line of duty," pay his phone bill, or keep his phone number, and that he was considering changing this habit.
So when the text message sending directory all stopped on November 7th, this date could not be a coincidence in the eyes of a perceptive police officer like him. Something must have happened to Kojinpei as well, which is why he stopped sending text messages and even sent messages that said he couldn't avenge him.
"When I took you out of that instance yesterday, I think I heard you talking to someone on your phone about avenging them. Oh, it was your friend!" Feng Xing Shou said as Hagiwara told him about the strange things that had happened to him that day.
His reaction made her realize that she hadn't made the mistake of being too familiar with him this time, and she felt much more relaxed. She then began to seriously think about how sad it would be if she were Hagiwara and her best friend died to avenge her.
Although she didn't have such good same-sex friends, let alone opposite-sex friends, just thinking about it made her envious and she said, "Did you bribe the underworld when you were reincarnated?"
Handsome, smart, and capable enough to become a police officer, plus a devoted friend who'd risk his life for you—wow! I wish I had been born with your good fortune! Over 1200 text messages—even a boyfriend probably couldn't manage that much!
"Huh?" When Hagiwara confided in her, he had thought about what she would say to comfort him, but he didn't expect that she would not comfort him at all. Instead, she showed strong envy and jealousy towards him. Even he, who was good at dealing with all kinds of social situations, was a little surprised at this moment.
Then he realized something from Feng Jiang's reaction: Feng Jiang probably didn't have anyone around her like Xiao Jinping and he had a relationship, which was why she was so envious, and she might not even have any friends she could talk to.
After all, most people judge by appearance. If Feng Jiang gains weight in her 30s, she might be able to make some friends. But if she's already plump from a young age? Then the number of friends she can truly befriend will be...
Realizing this, Kenji Hagiwara stopped expressing surprise and instead looked helpless, quipping himself, "What kind of reincarnation technique is this? If I hadn't met you, would I have been reincarnated at 22 and died in the line of duty?"
"Ahem... Let's not talk about things that haven't happened yet!" Feng Xingshou realized he had said the wrong thing again, and quickly changed the subject of reincarnation technology, looking at him seriously and asking, "So what are you planning to do next?"
"If something happens to such a close friend, given your personality, you wouldn't just stand by and do nothing." As he said the last sentence, Feng Xingshou was 100% certain that the police officer next to him would do something for his best friend.
After all, this person only learned about the game yesterday and already thought about using the highway game bug to protect his friends and family in case the game was released in the future. Besides, his best friend might have already died in the line of duty, and he's still so devoted to him. Sigh! I'm so envious…
As expected, a smile flashed in Hagiwara's eyes when he heard her ask that question. He then reached out and ruffled Kazesei's hair: "You're right, I do have some plans. I should thank you for reminding me back then!"
"Just talk, stop touching my hair. It's been over three days since I washed it, don't you think it's greasy?" Fuusei Shou slapped Hagiwara Kenji's hand away speechlessly. Being patted on the head by someone younger than him, even if he was handsome, was unbearable. o(￣ヘ￣o＃)
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