After being isolated from the snowy night, and with both of them having entered the house, the snow on their jackets and hair melted in the warmth of the living room.
Yet, the atmosphere felt like the cold wind from outside the window had blown into the room. A chilly silence spread in the corner. The two sat facing each other on the sofa, heads bowed as if pondering something. Neither dared to look at the other first, and neither had the desire to start a conversation.
Yukino was letting her feelings of anger and sadness settle. Everything that needed to be said had been spoken. She didn't know what else to say to Yuu at that moment.
Meanwhile, Yuu had no intention of responding to this situation coldly. He wasn't shocked by the girl's sincere anger, nor was he afraid to ease the tension out of guilt or any other emotion.
He was genuinely thinking.
He thought about Haruno's obsession, willing to oppose the little sister she loved most, just to hold onto those memories until now.
He thought about the moment when Asuna, full of anger and joy, transformed her pursuing resolve into a sword and thrust it at him.
He thought about Masuzu, who tried and attacked time and again, and finally smiled at him before the extinguished bonfire, saying she could never leave him.
He thought about the words Yukino spoke when she turned her face away, thought about her resolute gaze when she accepted the ridiculous request he made without hesitation.
He thought about Yuigahama, thought about Sora…
He thought about many people, and many things.
Yukino was right. She accurately guessed his deepest thoughts.
If, after the mission was over, everyone regained their dating memories, and the feelings he asked the System to withdraw also somehow returned.
Then, facing a Shuraba (chaos/conflict) situation where no one could be chosen, before they hurt each other, before they were hurt by him, and before the situation escalated further…
Yuu would immediately take Sora and leave Chiba City, even leave Japan outright. He would find a third-tier city in his homeland from his previous life, settle there, change his name, and start a new life anew—one without the System and without girlfriends, belonging only to him.
He believed that love wasn't something hard to let go of.
Time could erase all partings and wounds. After all, the longest he had dated any of them was only about two months. It might take about a year to forget them.
By then,there would be no one who liked him, and no one would show disappointed, sad, pained, or confused expressions because they were his girlfriends.
That was the decision of a real man.
If it can't be handled, discard it all.
Of course Yuu understood, this was the worst, most irresponsible action—but better a short pain than a prolonged one. Better to have no feelings than to have too many, right?
…And then Yukino said, all of that was self-deception.
That wasn't the future Yuu desired. It was just a True Ending he, thinking himself clever, had concocted on his own for their sake.
In a world like that, even without him, the pain wouldn't disappear. The only advantage was that he avoided the difficulty of handling emotional problems.
Even if he were more optimistic, and didn't worry so much—if all his worries didn't come true, and only Haruno regained her memories; if the fifth mission could be completed smoothly, and he could free himself from the System and achieve a wonderful life…
Could he enter a relationship and marry Yuigahama without any psychological burden?
Could he firmly reject Haruno and the others, and ignore Yukino who now hoped he would take responsibility, just because doing so was the most correct, and forget all that had happened in the past?
…As Yukino said earlier, Yuu had no right to do that.
The same mistake, he had already made it four times.
Four times in a row he fell in love with his mission targets, and he felt confused, suffered because of it, yet deep down he didn't regret it.
In short, he deserved to be in this dilemma.
He had already been their hero, but now he wanted to retreat using the excuse of a coward, disguising himself as a victim…
Never mind being a real man who could make his little sister proud, someone like him wasn't even worthy of being called human. Even a primitive person could step on his face and curse him, "Are you even human!"
So, he could only ask his own heart again.
Yuu slowly closed his eyes. He suppressed the frustration and tightness pooling in his chest, forced himself to calm down, and then asked himself.
Just as his mind went blank, words spoken by a grey-haired witch unconsciously surfaced in his thoughts.
(Nothing is absolutely correct! Don't be afraid of change. Your life belongs only to you, not to others!)
Yukino's skirt swayed. Her smooth thighs were reflected in his eyes, which had unconsciously opened.
"I'll make some tea… Once the tea is ready, give me your answer."
His consciousness returned from his reverie. Yuu listened to her calm voice, from which all anger had vanished, leaving only tenderness for him. He watched her back as she left.
Without a doubt, Yukino was a good girl.
Physically, although her chest armor was a bit flat, their shape, color, and elasticity were flawless.
Not to mention her pleasingly soft, white skin, slender waist, and long legs. Anyone would willingly kiss her until their bones broke.
As for her personality, it went without saying. Cold on the outside, warm on the inside, independent, self-confident, virtuous, and intelligent, yet she hadn't lost the shyness and vulnerability unique to a girl.
And the minor flaws that were once criticized had also changed a lot during their time together.
The Yukino of now, apart from her habit of being cold towards outsiders, had almost no dislikable shortcomings. Even her arrogant, praise-craving demeanor felt strangely amusing.
Lastly, she could even set aside her possessiveness for her boyfriend's sake, giving him a hard slap, and making him face his ex-girlfriends.
She even pushed him forward strongly from behind, as if not caring if he was dating multiple people, and rejected his choice to turn and run away, refusing everything.
Of course Yukino would want to be possessive if she could. But most importantly, it's the person she loves that she can't let go of!
As long as that person is happy, she doesn't care about the circumstances—both Yuu and the girl naturally understood that they both had this foolish mentality.
…However, even so.
Even if he had to embrace bad and selfish thoughts, even if he would be scorned by all the women in the world.
Even if it contradicted the loyalty he once prided himself on, and the justice he once upheld.
Yuu could no longer deny—he wanted to be possessive of his current girlfriend, and even of the future Yukino who would forget this moment.
"Yes…" He clenched his fist, the corner of his mouth curving. He chuckled lowly, mocking, yet relieved.
"She agreed to be my girlfriend, to be hugged, kissed, and groped all over by me. So, no matter what she thinks, whether she hates me or likes me, remembers or not, she must belong to me for this lifetime…"
"I am a selfish scoundrel like this."
Letting go of someone you love, that's something done by fools who think themselves heroes.
And now, Yuu, who was fundamentally not a hero, didn't want to be a fool anymore.
He wanted to be a clever scoundrel. He would love the girls who loved him. He would recolor the faded memories with beautiful hues that no one could take away.
Perhaps this decision would become a wrong choice, one he would regret in the future.
But to quote Araki-sensei: So-called preparedness is abandoning the bright path one should take for the sake of an important existence one doesn't want to let go of, and stepping without hesitation into a thorny wilderness.
At least the Yuu of now, because he loves her, doesn't want to let her go no matter what.
"The tea is ready… What kind of expression is that?"
Placing two cups of hot black tea on the table, Yukino frowned slightly. She observed the young man's facial features, which had suddenly become rougher and more masculine, with a hint of confusion.
Yuu looked much more refreshed than his previously gloomy and depressed appearance, but… Yukino still couldn't guess what the other was thinking.
"An expression of having understood everything." Yuu cast aside his pretense. He picked up the black tea without fear of the heat. After taking a sip, he smiled at her.
"Yukino, have you ever regretted liking me?"
"Why are you suddenly asking this?"
Yukino blinked in surprise, seeing his hopeful gaze. After shaking her head a little helplessly, she sat back down on the sofa and lifted her teacup with her slender fingers.
With her moist, pink lips slightly puckered, she blew on the tea slowly, while saying with half-lidded eyes and a flat tone: "Of course no girl doesn't regret liking someone who can't be faithful only to her, right?"
"Hmm, I knew you'd say that." Normally, Yuu would smile wryly at this point, feeling a little disappointed.
But now, drinking the fancy black tea made by his girlfriend, he could smile contentedly with a thick skin.
"There's a 'but' after that, right?"
As if not wanting to pay him any mind, Yukino didn't lift her head.
"Don't worry, there's no 'but'."
"Yukino Nee-san, I was wrong. Please give me that 'but'…"
"N-Nee-san?"
The girl pretending to be cold suddenly reacted.
As the deliberately faked, coquettish voice entered her ears, Yukino couldn't suppress a shudder throughout her body. A tingling sensation, like electricity, ran through her nerves.
Like a sadist whose nature enjoyed tormenting being satisfied, she unconsciously curved the corners of her lips. She put down her teacup and spoke in a cheerful tone.
"Good. Since you've begged me like that, then, poor little Yuu, let Nee-san give you the 'but'~"
This time, it was Yuu's turn for his expression to become complicated.
"Yukino, don't tell me you like playing sister-brother play? Don't mess around with this…"
Yukino always ignored her boyfriend's joking words.
"But."
She simply looked into Yuu's eyes. As if she had truly calmed down, she said in a light tone:
"But meeting you, dating you, even parting and meeting again—as long as it's a choice I made myself, no matter the past, present, or future, I have no regrets."
Emotion surged directly into his throat. Yuu took a deep breath and laughed heartily.
"In this regard, our opinions are very much the same."
"Of course. After all, someone as perfect as me, how could you possibly regret meeting me?"
"You're beautiful, everything you say is right… But before truly making a decision, there's still one problem." Yuu restrained his smile a little. He looked at Yukino seriously.
"When you remember that you're the one who changed a pure, flawless young man into a shameless harem king, don't you want to go back to the past, become like a spirit behind him, trying to control him to return to the right path with various threats and temptations?"
Yukino sighed again. She seemed to have no intention of responding to this question of his directly.
"First, your nature was already shameless to begin with, please don't burden me with this blame… If I could, I'd also want you to only look at me."
"Sorry." Yuu lowered his head very honestly, but like a ruffian, he didn't show much sincerity.
Suppressing the urge to splash the black tea in his face, Yukino took a sip of the now slightly cooled tea. Her voice became a little cold.
"Next, I'm not interested in changing a past that's already set… Even if I changed it, the future that returns to the right path wouldn't be mine, so why bother?"
"What the, you've really thought about it seriously." Yuu smiled happily, but was glared back at by Yukino, whose face was reddening, "Then, there's one last question…"
"Figure it out yourself!"
The teacup was placed heavily on the saucer, producing a clear sound.
"Tagore once said, truth can bear the weight of failure, but falsehood cannot… As long as you believe what you are doing is the truth, then in the end, all problems will be solved."
After lecturing him with a sharp gaze, Yukino was amused by his miserable and honest appearance, so she couldn't help but sigh in resignation and rub her temples.
"Besides, having problems that can be overcome is a joyful thing… Enough, you know what I mean."
Her body relaxed. Her eyes met Yuu's again.
This time, they were separated by the cold coffee table, but there was none of the tension and suffocation from when they were embracing in the snow.
She slowly showed a relieved smile. Her azure eyes were like the clearest winter sky, reflecting his eyes which had now cleared of mist.
"Then, can you give me your answer?"
"Hmm."
With utmost seriousness, Yuu slowly exhaled all the air from his lungs. Then, he looked at his girlfriend with firm eyes.
As if wanting to freeze his voice into a physical form, he said, word by word:
"From now on, I will not let you go again!"
This vow, Yuu would carry out from now into the future.
From the heavily snowy winter, to the spring that warmly melts the snow—this is what he wanted to do.
"Hmm~ Although it seems a bit lacking in depth, and there's still room for improvement… But the determination is palpable, it wasn't in vain that I spent so many words on you."
Tucking a strand of hair from her cheek behind her ear, Yukino pursed her thin, soft lips. She smiled contentedly: "Then, tomorrow morning, you know what to do, right?"
"Eh… Of course, I hope you won't slap me." Yuu laughed awkwardly twice. He seemed genuinely afraid that such a future would occur.
Shaking her head helplessly, Yukino looked at him, and suddenly leaned closer. She stretched both her hands across the coffee table.
Yuu understood her intention and also leaned his upper body closer. However, she unexpectedly bypassed his lips, and then he felt a moist touch on his earlobe.
Yukino hugged his neck tightly. With an extremely satisfied smile on her face, she whispered in his ear.
"Tenkuji-kun, I love you."
"I swear, feelings like this, I definitely won't forget them."
"Lastly—"
She paused for a moment. She bit his earlobe, leaving a faint bite mark there coquettishly.
Only then did she say with a smile:
"Don't make me wait too long, my most ideal boyfriend…"
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for completing the Mission.]