Factory Reset, Shamed Hachiman
「The moment he called out the silver-haired girl's name, Hikigaya Hachiman saw a streak of brilliant joy flash through Emilia's despondent eyes.」
「Hurting because of him, rejoicing because of him—she approached him with trepidation, a visible aura of unease and hesitation clinging to her, yet supported by a certain inner strength... Coldly calm now, Hachiman could easily see right through this girl who knew nothing of concealment.」
「Though his understanding was still shallow, judging from this glimpse, Hachiman knew that no matter what, he could never hate this gentle girl.」
「Compared to the relatively affected Yuigahama Yui, everything about Emilia came purely from the heart; this purity even surpassed that of Yukinoshita.」
「He shouldn't jump to conclusions so quickly, but in Emilia, he did indeed find a faint shadow of the "Genuine."」
「And precisely because of that—」
「"Could you please not do that, Miss Emilia?"」
「The sudden use of a formal honorific caused Emilia to freeze, her whole body turning cold. Her eyes widened in shock, and she looked so bitter she was on the verge of tears, appearing utterly at a loss.」
「"Did I do something wrong? I'm sorry, I'm truly sorry! I'll change, I promise! If you just tell me, I'll definitely fix it! But please don't hate me, Hachiman, I beg you... anyone but you, I can't take it... please!"」
「Like an abandoned puppy, Emilia instinctively took a step forward, wanting to grab hold of her knight, but she immediately realized what she was doing and retreated with a sob, not daring to approach Hachiman again without permission.」
「"I don't hate you, and you haven't done anything wrong. It's just... it's not appropriate to do that to me. I'm sorry, Miss Emilia, but currently... I simply cannot adapt to this reality."」
「Hikigaya Hachiman sighed. He hadn't expected his pre-amnesiac self to have made this girl fall for him to such an incredible degree. It was simply inconceivable.」
「When he was supposed to be nothing more than a useless Hikigaya Hachiman.」
「Keeping his dead-fish eyes fixed forward, he continued to struggle with his explanation: "The intimacy, care, trust, and the love you're giving... I won't deny it, I can feel that these are your heartfelt emotions. But I am no longer the Hikigaya Hachiman you love."」
「"Without the memories of being with you, I simply have no right to accept these feelings... The fault is mine, you've done nothing wrong. Please, stop crying, all right?"」
「He took a long, roundabout way to eventually shoulder the blame himself, using it as a way to ease the girl's mind.」
「Wrapped in this familiar, characteristic style of his, Emilia forgot to cry. She stared blankly at her knight, then suddenly broke into a smile through her tears. "As I thought... you say you aren't the Hachiman I know, but Hachiman is Hachiman. Thank goodness, truly thank goodness."」
「Her murmurs were laced with relief and a peculiar sense of nostalgia.」
「Hikigaya Hachiman unobtrusively took a half-step back to avoid being lunged at and hugged by Emilia. He was feeling a bit overwhelmed; his attempt at distancing himself seemed to have made this silver-haired girl even more certain of her feelings for his current self.」
「He had no choice but to rack his brains for a way to continue his persuasion.」
「"Besides, I've been in this world for over a year. I must have changed, right? I must be very different from who I am now. The one Miss Emilia loves is that me. It would be better if you didn't harbor unrealistic expectations for the current me."」
「"That's not true at all! Hachiman is Hachiman!"」
「Feeling Hachiman's gentleness washing over her again, Emilia argued her case: "Look, those eyes. When I first met Hachiman, you had those exact eyes. Even though they changed later, I don't hate Hachiman's eyes like this at all!"」
「"Wha—"」
「Hikigaya Hachiman was dumbfounded. "Are you an angel?"」
「In all his years of living, this was the first time he had ever met someone who praised his dead-fish eyes. Even Yukinoshita and Komachi disliked them intensely.」
「"That's such an over-the-top compliment... but if Hachiman says I'm an angel, then I suppose I am. There's nothing about Hachiman—not a single part—that I hate, you know?"」
「Having learned various terms from her knight during their chats over the past year, Emilia understood what "angel" implied. She blinked her magnificent violet eyes, deeply moved.」
「Hikigaya Hachiman turned his face away. He couldn't help but blush; after all, he had always been terrible at dealing with beautiful girls.」
「If the other person wanted to pick a fight with him like Yukinoshita, he could ignore her beauty and snap back... but what was this? To pick up such a "Genuine" beautiful girl who was devoted to him for no reason at all?」
「"See? This is it too! Whenever you hear a compliment, Hachiman either argues that there's nothing worth praising, or you blush just like this."」
「Emilia was pressing her advantage. Her memory wasn't normally outstanding, but she remembered everything about Hachiman with crystalline clarity.」
「Not just the later things, but from their very first meeting. Although Hachiman had used the excuse of making a deal with her at the time, his desire to help her was actually impossible to hide.」
「Hachiman was amazing, truly amazing. Many of his thoughts were unfathomable, and his competence brought peace of mind. But you know, when it came to his desire to help others, Hachiman couldn't hide it at all... because that desire was exactly the same as the one she had always carried.」
「The first person willing to lend her a hand, the person who had no prejudice against her, the person who could love her, the person who saved her.」
「How could she not firmly remember everything about such a Hachiman?」
「"Speaking of which, at the beginning, Hachiman was just like this. You didn't even dare to hold hands or sit with girls; you always tried to keep a distance. From what you told me It was only after Rem hugged you during the Mabeast invasion that you gradually became willing to shorten that distance."」
「Hikigaya Hachiman's body shuddered again and again. At this point, he had no time to think about what was real or fake; the fact that she could point out so many details meant they had indeed lived together day and night. It couldn't be a fabrication.」
「More than being bothered by this confirmed truth, he just wanted to escape the embarrassment as quickly as possible.」
「His inability to take a compliment, his fear of approaching girls—having these personality traits pointed out by the silver-haired girl before him made him feel as if he had no dignity left. It was so awkward he wanted to crawl into a hole!」
「This feeling was no different from reciting his cringeworthy middle-school diary in front of his entire class!」
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