Amnesiac Hikigaya Hachiman (Part 2)
On the roof of the mansion, Beatrice stood frozen in shock, her teeth chattering as a wave of panic swept through her entire body.
"Betty's... Betty's... Obviously, if there was a magic crystal, if all the mana in the crystal was forcibly poured in for just an instant, Betty could have been awakened! If Betty were there, if Betty were together with him, how could it... how could it..."
She wandered in a state of misery. She was clearly Hachiman's contracted spirit, yet in the Water Gate City, aside from the initial encounter with Sirius, she had been asleep the entire time, failing completely in her responsibility to protect him.
"Yes, if that were done, you could have been forcibly awakened."
Roswaal murmured softly, seeing through everything. "However, that would have also been a burden on you. He wanted you to wake up completely unharmed. Furthermore, a single magic crystal would at most allow you to cast one or two spells; in that case, facing enemies like the Sin Archbishops, you might not even have been able to protect yourself."
"Hikigaya Hachiman had his own selfishness... Seeing you like a little sister, he truly did not want you to be involved in the peril of fighting Sin Archbishops from the bottom of his heart."
Roswaal's analysis, word by word, made Beatrice grit her teeth even harder as tears streamed down her face. She felt more grief, more heartache for her contractor, Hachiman.
"Why... why must you be gentle to this extent? It's too much, it's really too much, completely ignoring Betty's wishes... You idiot, if you lose your memory, Betty would rather die herself to protect you... Stupid Hachiman! Sob sob..."
Soaked in sobs, Beatrice wept bitterly. Her murderous intent toward the Gluttony Archbishop was unparalleled. She even resented Al and Crusch. As companions fighting side-by-side, none of them had managed to save Hachiman in time, letting him fall to such a fate.
"The Hachiman that Betty waited four hundred years for... just like that, just like that...!"
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"The most disgusting Sin Archbishop, bar none!"
In the convenience store, Yukinoshita's decisive characterization of Batenkaitos was met with unanimous agreement from all staff and customers. Everyone felt a deep-seated loathing for this Gluttony Archbishop from the bottom of their hearts.
"..."
Hikigaya Hachiman closed his eyes in silence and let out a long, deep sigh.
Although the things he had objectively done would not be erased, the fact that his future memories were plundered meant he could already foresee that it would be very difficult for him to accept the feelings of Emilia and the others. He might even avoid them...
The "Genuine Thing" he sought was so strictly demanding—so demanding that it absolutely could not be one-sided!
At this moment, Hachiman's stomach twitched slightly... He could already imagine how excessively he, in the future, would unintentionally break the hearts of Emilia, Garfiel, Crusch, and the others.
For the first time in his life, Hikigaya Hachiman, standing there in silence, felt a sense of repulsion toward his own excessive pursuit of the "Genuine."
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「"...You're joking, right? ...Hey, General, it's me, Garfiel! I'm the Garfiel you placed high hopes on! I'm the Garfiel who made a promise with you, General!?"」
「Garfiel, eyes wide and emotions surging, was frantic. Hikigaya Hachiman was a bit startled. For the sake of his own safety, he wanted to play along with Garfiel, but without his memories, he couldn't fake it.」
「Because he had no idea what kind of person Garfiel's 'General' was supposed to be.」
「"I'm sorry... maybe you should look closer? Maybe my face looks a bit like your General's, but my name is Hikigaya Hachiman. Let's not get confused, okay?"」
「His cautious manner was full of wariness and distance toward Garfiel. Garfiel froze. Suddenly, tears began to flow. He roared at the sky in fury, then turned and grabbed Al by the collar. "What kind of joke is this... you bastard... why didn't you stop the Gluttony Archbishop? Why!?"」
「Al's voice was low. "I wanted to see Brother turn out like this even less than you did."」
「But in an open area, what could he do when he couldn't utilize his partial Authority?」
「Crusch's body went limp. With a face of disbelief, she clutched her head and collapsed powerlessly to the ground, murmuring: "It was me, I didn't protect Sir Hachiman well enough. I wasn't strong enough. I... I..."」
「"Hachiman, do you remember me?"」
「Stunned for a moment but quickly regaining her composure, Emilia forced a pained smile to soothe her knight. She took hold of Hikigaya Hachiman's reliable hand and asked in a soft, tiptoeing whisper: "Emilia. Your Emilia... do you remember me, Hachiman?"」
「But in the next second, she couldn't even maintain that pained smile... A startled Hikigaya Hachiman yanked his hand back with a shloop, stood up, and retreated several steps, looking at her with a frown.」
「"I'm sorry. Maybe you know a 'Hachiman,' but I am Hikigaya Hachiman. I'm not the Hachiman you know... really, please stop mistaking me for someone else."」
「It was as if physical intimacy with her was something absolutely unacceptable.」
「Emilia looked down and realized her dress was stained with Sirius's blood; perhaps it was on her face as well. In the eyes of an amnesiac Hachiman, she was likely a terrifying, strange murderer.」
「"How can this be..." Wilhelm knelt on the ground in remorse. He knew that Ricardo and the three Mimi siblings were originally supposed to deal with the Gluttony Archbishop together, but Lord Hachiman, in order to fulfill Wilhelm's long-cherished wish to reunite with his wife, had dispatched all those helpers to his side.」
「"Why... why, Theresia?"」
「He should have hardened his heart and put everything into killing his wife, who had already become a corpse-soldier. For his own ephemeral wish as an old man to save his wife, Lord Hachiman paid the price of his memories.」
「Wilhelm wept bitter tears. His guilt was something Ricardo, who knew the inside story, could deeply understand.」
「"How unsightly. That's enough mourning. It has spoiled Our mood. Those unaware would think a great battle had been lost, slandering Our reputation."」
「Retracting the Yang Sword and fluttering her crimson fan, Priscilla was merciless even at a time like this. Her arrogant, extremely self-centered remarks made even the good-natured Emilia and Crusch glare at her in anger; Garfiel looked as if he wanted to beat her to death.」
「Priscilla sneered. "What? You useless fools. Will weeping day and night bring back the fool's memories?"」
「"—While that cannot be done, please understand the feelings of everyone here, Lady Priscilla."」
「The one who calmed the atmosphere was Julius... the former Julius.」
「Every movement of this Julius allowed anyone seeing him to understand instantly: he had absolutely recovered all of his memories.」
「"...Your name is Hikigaya Hachiman. I have not mistaken you, none of us have. You are Hikigaya Hachiman, my best friend—you fulfilled your promise, Hachiman-kun."」
「Suppressing his tears, the memory-restored Julius spoke these words.」
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