“What’s wrong, Mikkun?” “Oh, nothing… I mean, um… I was just thinking that you’ve been a little more, uh, friendly than usual today, Professor…” “Mnn…” Apparently, this was news to the Professor, as it was now her turn to tilt her head in thought. After a moment, she nodded briskly. “I suppose you might be right. I can’t very well view my own actions objectively.” Minoru hesitated a moment before he responded. “Right… Um, is there some reason…?” Minoru knew even less about the Professor’s family circumstances than he did about the others, like Yumiko and Olivier. He had wondered while they were sitting in the kotatsu at SFD Headquarters what kind of explanation she’d given her family, but even the idea that she had a family at all was just an assumption on his part. Currently, Suu and Olivier were in the hospital, but DD and Yumiko were apparently at home with their families. Wasn’t the Professor lonely spending New Year’s alone at headquarters, with no one else around? It was with all that in mind that he’d asked his question, but the Professor’s answer was far from what he’d expected… “Hmm, let me see… Mikkun, the SFD doesn’t have any silly rules or regulations that forbid members from dating one another, you know.” “Erm…what?” Minoru stared down at Professor Riri, who was looking up at him with a serious face. “So if you ever manage to work out the romantic rivalry between you, Yukko, and Hinako, you won’t be reprimanded or anything… Oh, or does a ‘romantic rivalry’ only refer to two men fighting over a woman? What’s it called when it’s two women, then…?” “Isn’t it just a l—? I mean, wait, no! Th-there’s nothing going on between me and Suu or Yumiko!” “I don’t think Yukko would’ve been crying like that over ‘nothing’…” “……Please don’t ever, ever say that in front of her…” “Of course not. In any case…I suppose it’s possible that I subconsciously felt left out of your little situation, and that was the cause of my behavior today.” “H…huh…?” What’s there to feel “left out” about, and why would it lead to you being extra affectionate? Minoru was very confused. But before he could get any kind of answer, a car horn blared briefly nearby. Looking up, he saw that a red compact car had stopped on the side of the walkway about nine meters away from them, with its hazard lights on. “Oh, there they are.” The Professor quickened her pace without releasing Minoru’s hand, so he broadened his strides as well. As he approached the car, an Alfa Romeo Giulietta, he heard the door unlocking. The Professor let go of his hand and opened the door on the passenger’s side, adding, “You sit in the back, Mikkun,” so Minoru obediently climbed into the rear area, which was surprisingly spacious for a hatchback. His nose was greeted by a faint whiff of citrus as he entered. At the same time, a voice came from the driver’s seat. “Happy New Year, Utsugi.” “Oh yes, Happy New Year…wait, Yumiko?!” Minoru flinched back automatically as Yumiko Azu shot him a glance from the front seat, her black hair fastened in a simple red barrette. “There’s no need to look so shocked.” “I-it’s just I heard that you were home with your family…” “I came back today. I wanted to visit Komura, too.” “I…I see. Sorry about that. Thank you for driving.” Ducking his head a little, Minoru tightened his seat belt. In the passenger’s seat, the Professor was also adjusting the length of her seat belt as she spoke to Yumiko. “We’re not on a mission today, so please drive safely, Yukko.” “Understood… But still, Professor…” Yumiko glanced to her right for a moment, then quickly shook her head and pushed the start button. “No, never mind.” The engine, which was considerably more vigorous than that of the average Japanese car, roared to life as the instrument panel lit up. It was at this point that Minoru started to wonder how Yumiko had gotten a license when she was a first-year in high school like him…again. He hadn’t gotten too hung up on it when Suu Komura, a middle schooler, was driving a Daihatsu Copen before, but Yumiko was wearing her usual sailor uniform with a black blazer and red ribbon, so Minoru was worried that they might get stopped by motorcycle police or something. However, Yumiko clearly had no such concerns as they set off smoothly in the six-speed manual Giulietta. Cruising at an easy speed past the lines of apartment buildings, they turned left on Meiji Avenue. Minoru opened his mouth again as the speed of the car started to rise. “So, um…this isn’t the same car as before, is it? The Delica.” The car in question was a black minivan that they’d taken to the reconnaissance mission in Minami-Aoyama. “Well, there are only three of us today, so there was no reason to take such a big car.” “But there’s also that Copen that Suu was driving that time and that Agusta you had, Yumiko… Just how many vehicles does the SFD have, exactly?” Yumiko and the Professor locked eyes for a moment, then cleared their throats at the same time. “Well, let’s just say…as many as are necessary for our mission, Mikkun.” “Uh…right…” “I mean, James Bond has a different vehicle in practically every scene, right? And they’re always super-high-class luxury cars, whether it’s Jaguars or Aston Martins.” “Uh…riiight…” …There’s still an awful lot that I don’t know about the SFD, Minoru couldn’t help but think. On January 3, there were few cars in the city center as the red Giulietta smoothly headed south on Meiji Avenue, turned onto Gaien West Avenue from Yasukuni Avenue, and pulled into the parking lot of the large hospital in Hiroo, Shibuya. The place was less than a mile away from Minami-Aoyama, where they had battled with Liquidizer and Trancer on New Year’s Eve. Perhaps it was excessive to use an emergency helicopter for such a short distance, but that was also reflective of how severe Suu’s condition was. Stepping out of the car, which Yumiko had parked perfectly on her first attempt, Minoru was greeted by the faint smell of disinfectant, even in the parking lot. Professor Riri Isa proceeded toward the building with a stiff expression, and Minoru and Yumiko followed. After taking the elevator to the fourth floor, the Professor led the way past the nurses’ station and proceeded into the hallway. At the end of the hall was a sturdy stainless steel door, with a guard stationed in front of it. As the three approached, the guard snapped off a quick salute, to which the Professor responded with a silent nod. His uniform suggested he was from a private security firm, but Minoru wondered if he was connected with the police as the man operated a security device to open the door with a heavy sound. On the other side was a completely silent space, overflowing with white light. The clean aisle continued for about nine meters, with large horizontal windows and a pair of sliding doors along the left wall. Stopping in front of the first window, the Professor had to stand on tiptoe a little to see inside. Yumiko walked forward, looking resolute, so Minoru followed behind her. Through the window was a spacious private room, full of machinery. And in the center was a single wheeled bed. About three weeks ago, Minoru had gone to the university hospital in Saitama to visit Tomomi Minowa after she was attacked by the Ruby Eye Biter. At that time, Tomomi’s room had a large window with flowers on the bedside table, but the ICU room on the other side of the glass the three looked at now was far colder and mechanical, the very air heavy with tension. Resisting the urge to press his hands and forehead against the polished glass, Minoru squinted inside intently. There was a blanket over the bed and a cabinet of machinery in front of it, so all Minoru could see of the patient were the tips of her shoulders. But Minoru was instinctively certain that the pure-white skin peeping out of the post-op clothing belonged to Suu Komura. “……Can we not go in, Professor?” Yumiko asked in a quiet voice on Minoru’s left. The Professor answered from his right. “Unfortunately, this is as far as we have permission to go. Hinako’s vitals are stable right now, but she did just undergo surgery to treat an acute subdural hemorrhage…” “So…she will wake up, won’t she?” The Professor’s response to Yumiko’s question was slightly delayed. “…I believe she will. However, since Hinako’s Third Eye is fused to the lower portion of her thalamus, even specialized physicians can’t predict what the effect on her brain might be. We don’t even know yet how Third Eyes gain energy from our bodies or whether biochemical energy is involved…” Minoru unconsciously moved his left hand to touch the center of his chest. The black Third Eye inside Minoru’s body was embedded in the center of his breastbone, slightly above the surface of the sternum. Even just pressing on his skin, he could feel the slight protrusion, though there was no pain or sense of a foreign substance. The Third Eye sometimes hid itself completely inside the body, like in the cases of Yumiko, Minoru, and Suu, but other times, like with Igniter or the STS member Kakinari, nearly half of it could be exposed. Nobody yet knew why these spheres had appeared or why they had latched onto humans. But even so… “……If the Third Eye is a living thing…surely it doesn’t want to die, either.” Yumiko and the Professor turned toward Minoru as he mumbled. Feeling their gaze on him, Minoru continued. “I think they must have a reason for falling to earth and attaching themselves to humans…a purpose for their existence. So if its host’s life is in danger, I think it would try to help…even if that’s just so it can keep fighting the enemy.” “……Yes, that makes sense.” The Professor nodded, her braids swaying. “The Third Eye synthesizes incredible things inside our body, like the substance adenosine nonaphosphate. In which case…since the brain is the greatest black box of the human body, perhaps it would try to heal it in a way that would normally be impossible for us. Hinako is going to wake up again, sooner or later… I’m sure of it.” Yumiko’s expression shifted inscrutably at these words. “You’re right… Komura is the strongest Jet Eye in the SFD, so she’s not going to die from a little bump to the head. I’m sure she’ll be back before we know it, Utsugi.” Usually, Minoru would automatically get defensive and ask why she’d directed those words at him, but now he simply nodded. “……Yeah. I’m sure she will.” With another glance at Suu’s left shoulder that peeked out from the blanket and a silent, earnest prayer for the quickest recovery possible, Minoru stepped away. Then something occurred to him, and he looked around. However, there was no one in sight besides the three of them, either inside the ICU or the short hallway. “Erm…Professor?” “Hmm?” “Doesn’t Suu have an older brother? Why isn’t he here?” The Professor and Yumiko looked at each other, and both uttered a soft “Well…” at the same time. Minoru’s brow furrowed at their strange reaction. He definitely remembered being told that Suu Komura’s older brother was also a Jet Eye and that they’d joined the SFD at the same time. Since apparently the siblings had been taking turns watching Minoru’s home when he was away, he was anxious to meet Suu’s brother someday so that he could thank him. It was reasonable enough that he never saw him at headquarters, since he was busy with his own duties, but surely they’d allow him to watch over his sister while she was in a coma…? However, this train of thought was abruptly ended by a few words from the Professor. “…No, he’s here.” “Wh…what? I mean… Where?” Minoru looked around again, but he still only saw the Professor and Yumiko. Then a possibility finally occurred to him. “Ah… Does he have the same refraction ability as Suu, maybe…? …Is he…invisible…?” Minoru was relatively confident in this conjecture, but this time, it was Yumiko who shook her head. “Not really. Although I suppose you could say it’s a similar sort of ability…or maybe not.” With no idea what to think anymore, Minoru looked back and forth between Professor Riri and Yumiko. After a few seconds, the Professor cleared her throat as if to shake off some indecision and spoke. “As a general rule, we usually prefer our members to disclose their abilities at their own discretion, but…Hinako’s brother is a special case, so I’ll just have to get his consent after the fact… Mikkun, can you see what’s on the nurse’s cart in the far back of the room there…?” “Huh…?” Surprised by the strange question, a bewildered Minoru focused his gaze on the inside of the treatment room. There was a multistage table with casters on the right side of the room, which was probably the “nurse’s cart” that the Professor was referring to. On top of the white surface was an object that was so out of place in the hospital room that Minoru didn’t know how he hadn’t noticed it before. It was a doll about twenty centimeters in height—a figurine of what looked like a female character from an anime or game, to be precise. “…Um, the figure…?” “Mm-hmm. That would be where Shou Komura, SFD code name Spectator, is watching from.” “……” If this were any other situation, Minoru would probably have assumed that the Professor was just messing with him. However, Professor Riri didn’t seem like the type to make such an absurd joke in front of the comatose Suu, and Yumiko was just as straight-faced standing beside her. Which would mean that this was the truth. The somewhat suggestive figure of an anime girl, who appeared to be wearing armor over a leotard, was Komura’s older brother. “……So is his ability to turn into a figure, or…?” Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, the Professor shook her head at Minoru’s hesitant question. “Not quite. Komsho’s consciousness is in that figure, but it’s not actually the person himself.” “Kom…” Minoru was confused for a moment, but then he realized that this was probably the Professor’s strange nickname for Suu’s older brother, like “Mikkun” and “Hinako.” The fact that it seemed to be a mishmash of “Shou” and “Komura” made him sure of it this time. But that wasn’t the concerning part. What exactly did it mean that his consciousness was there, but it wasn’t him? “…So that figure is some sort of medium…?” Yumiko rapped Minoru briskly on the back, right near his spinal column. “My, aren’t you perceptive.” “I-is that a compliment?” “Of course it is. Spectator’s ability is remote viewing… Though he can’t just observe wherever he wants. He can use figures that decorated his room for years to see and hear what’s going on wherever they’re located.” The Professor added a few words to Yumiko’s explanation. “Incidentally, there’s also a figure inside the terminal box attached to the telephone pole in front of your house, Mikkun, and Komsho is watching it even now. If there’s anything suspicious sighted, you’ll be contacted right away.” “I…see…” Still astonished, Minoru took another look at the figure in the ICU. But soon, he came up with another question. “…Professor, you said before that the Third Eyes manipulate molecules directly in order to manifest their supernatural powers, right? But…how does that explain being able to see a faraway place through a figure’s eyes…?” “An excellent question. But think about DD’s powers as the Searcher, for example. He can sense via smell when molecules are being manipulated by Ruby Eyes as far as several kilometers away. There’s no exchange of molecules between the Ruby Eye and DD at that moment. My fellow researchers call this phenomenon that allows Third Eyes to manipulate molecules a ‘seventh force,’ so I think that those sorts of abilities are an effect of this.” “You said it was sort of like telekinesis, right, Professor?” Minoru nodded, thinking he’d ask Yumiko later why it was called a “seventh force.” “I see… So if DD can smell molecules from far away, it’s possible that Mr. Komura can feel the light and air vibrations around the figure…I suppose. I don’t get why it has to be figures, but…” “You’ll have to ask Hinako when she wakes up.” With that, the Professor shifted the sleeve of her pink down jacket, reading the time from what looked like a cute kids’ wristwatch. “…Sorry, but our time’s just about up. I know it must not feel like we got to visit her at all, since it was only through a window, but…” “No, it’s all right.” Yumiko was the one who answered. “Even from here, I can tell that Komura is fighting to hang in there, and I’m sure she can feel that we’re supporting her, too.” “…I think so, too.” Minoru nodded firmly, and the Professor smiled up at them with a bit of a sparkle in her eyes. “Yes, you’re right. Hinako will return to the SFD soon enough… You’ll have to cook her a feast when that happens, Mikkun.” “Of course!” With an emphatic response, Minoru started to follow the Professor toward the exit of the isolated area. But just then, he heard a faint vibration sound, and the Professor stopped. Taking her smartphone out from her jacket pocket, she tapped the screen with her thumb. Her brow furrowed, she glanced down at a message from someone, gave a low cry… “…What’s this…?!” …and turned around on the spot. Passing by Minoru as he hurriedly moved out of the way, she returned to the window of Suu’s sickroom and pressed her right hand and forehead against the glass. “What…what’s going on?!” Without answering Yumiko’s question, the Professor kept staring at the bed for a while, then shouted again. “I-it’s true…!” “Seriously, what happened?!” “Komsho just texted me to say that Hinako’s finger is moving!” “What…?!” Yumiko and Minoru exclaimed in unison, rushing over to press against the window as well. Staring at the bed surrounded by monitors, he realized it was true—on Suu’s right hand, which was protruding just a little from the white blanket, her index finger was trembling ever so slightly. “Is…is it just a twitch? Or…” The Professor quickly shook her head at Yumiko’s whisper. “No, there’s regularity in the finger’s movements… Hinako is trying to tell us something. That movement… Is it Japanese Morse code?! Something about a field…?” Minoru was impressed by the Professor’s immediate recognition of the finger’s movement as Morse code, thanks to her speculation ability. However, Yumiko was the first to recognize the contents of the message. “No, Professor, it’s ‘inside the shell’!” At that, the Professor clenched her right hand into a fist. “Yes, that’s it… Hinako is saying she wants to be put inside Mikkun’s protective shell!” Fifteen minutes later, Minoru once again stood in front of the ICU. He had been made to strip down to his socks and underwear, had his entire body sterilized, and put on a sterile, green clean room suit. This time, he wasn’t here just to pray for Suu Komura’s recovery from the other side of the glass. He was going inside to make contact with her. A doctor, who seemed to know about the SFD and Third Eyes, operated a panel near the sliding doors, causing air to blow out from above the doorframe. This was an air curtain to prevent any contamination and viruses from entering. Then the doctor, who had a name tag on his chest that read “Hongou,” looked at Minoru and spoke. “The door will only be open for two seconds, so please enter as quickly as possible.” “O…okay. I’m ready.” Minoru looked over at the Professor and Yumiko, who were waiting on standby a couple of meters away, then nodded. Dr. Hongou again flicked his fingers along the panel. The instant the door opened with a hiss, Minoru pushed against the air flowing out of the room to step inside. Immediately, the door closed behind him. The inside of the ICU was quiet and almost odorless, but there was a slight trace of the sweet fragrance that Minoru remembered. He’d smelled it throughout the reconnaissance mission in Minami-Aoyama, when he was carrying Suu Komura on his back. Minoru first walked straight ahead from the door, approaching the nurse’s cart on the right side of the room. There, he gave a little bow to the anime girl figure, through which Shou Komura was apparently watching, before turning to the left. As soon as he laid eyes on the entirety of the bed, most of which had been hidden from outside of the room, Minoru gasped sharply. Lying underneath a thin blanket, Suu Komura looked even more fragile than Minoru remembered. A white bandage was wrapped around her head, and the skin below it was nearly as pale—yet still strikingly beautiful as her eyes lay closed without the slightest flicker of movement. It certainly looked as though she was still comatose, but the index finger of her right hand, jutting out from under the blanket, occasionally twitched faintly. Most likely, she had used up all her strength sending the Morse code message before and was desperately trying to convey something despite her exhaustion. “……Suu.” When Minoru spoke to her quietly, the movement of her finger seemed to become just a bit stronger. There was no point in simply standing there wasting time. Gathering his resolve, Minoru approached the bed and gently grasped her right hand with his left. For a moment, the coolness of her smooth skin made him falter a little. But he could still feel Suu’s will to live somewhere beneath that coldness. Still holding her hand, Minoru sat on the bed with his left knee. Thinking of how the Professor, Yumiko, the doctor, and Suu’s brother were all watching threatened to overwhelm him with embarrassment, but this was no time for being distracted. He pulled away the blanket, folded it up, and placed it on the nearby cart, exposing Suu’s body, which was clad only in a simple hospital gown. The IV line, the electrodes of the ECG monitor, and so on had already been removed by Dr. Hongou, but the cannula still in her left arm looked awfully painful. Minoru felt nervous about putting all his weight on such a frail body, but even with her serious injuries, she should still have the enhanced healing abilities granted by the Third Eye. He put his right hand over Suu’s as well despite his cast, lined his feet up with hers, and carefully positioned himself to cover her body. Finally, he put his head on the pillow next to Suu’s right ear and let the strength go out of his body. However, he still couldn’t relax his mental tension. Minoru didn’t want to doubt that Suu’s Morse code message, “inside the shell,” meant that she wanted to be put inside Minoru’s protective barrier. However, if he failed at bringing her inside, her body would suffer a powerful shock. Even a novice like Minoru knew that this would have a traumatic effect on her brain, since she’d just had decompression surgery performed on her so recently. Professor Riri Isa and Dr. Hongou understood this danger but chose to prioritize Suu’s wishes. This was also a show of faith in Minoru. He had to live up to their expectations—but the thought was making his breathing shallow and his limbs cold. Then… He felt the fingers of Suu’s right hand, grasped in his left hand, starting to move again. They had been so cold not long ago, but now they were rather warm. Encouraged by the gentle warmth and trembling of her hands, Minoru concentrated hard, taking a deep breath of the sweet-scented air. Gathering as much air as he could, he put pressure on the Third Eye embedded in his breastbone. Minoru’s ability as the Isolator, his protective shell, activated, tinting his field of vision blue. Only when all sound had disappeared did he realize that the treatment room, which had seemed so quiet, had been full of the noise of operating machinery. In its place was a mysterious low hum that sounded as if it was coming from far away. And beneath that, the soft sound of Suu Komura’s breathing. Suu’s body, pressed close to Minoru’s, was floating about two centimeters above the sheets and pillow. He’d succeeded in bringing her into the shell. But that was all. He kept waiting, but there was no sign that Suu would wake up. The Professor had warned him before he’d entered the room of the possibility that nothing would happen. It might just be her muddled consciousness wishing for that, and if anything, the odds of something happening were much lower. It made sense. Minoru’s ability could only create an invisible barrier around his body to render him invulnerable. It was still a mystery how the shell could stop radiant heat, or electromagnetic waves, while allowing visible light through, or how there was still enough air to breathe despite it being an airtight space, but at the very least it was clear that it had no heightened healing powers or anything like that. And yet. Five days ago, when they first tested Minoru’s ability to bring Suu into the shell in his room, she seemed to like it inside. If this would help Suu feel even a little more at ease during her desperate battle, he would gladly continue for minutes or even hours. “……Suu?” Minoru felt the bandage over her right ear as he whispered to her. “You said something before you got onto the helicopter, didn’t you? That I’m the hope of all the Jet Eyes…no, everyone who has a Third Eye. To be honest, I don’t believe that at all. And I don’t know if I’ll ever change… All this time, I’ve lived my life trying to avoid getting close to or involved with anyone. Because I couldn’t bear to make any more unhappy, painful memories. I was afraid that that sort of thing would combine with my memories of that night…the night when my parents and older sister were killed…and start to take over my mind completely.” As he spoke, scenes from the night he was describing flickered in the back of his mind. His sister Wakaba’s smile as she hid Minoru in the storage space under the floor of the pantry. And her last words. Don’t worry. I’ll protect you, Mii. Wakaba, who was only eleven years old at the time, had kept her promise. In order to defend the eight-year-old Minoru, she stood against the murderer who had invaded their home, and she lost her life in the process. If only…if only Minoru had been able to go out and help his sister instead of trembling in the storage space below the floor. Even if they couldn’t take on the murderer directly, perhaps Minoru could have distracted him long enough for both his sister and himself to escape, instead of only Minoru… Of course, it was just as likely that he would have been caught by the criminal and killed along with his sister. But maybe that would have been better than being the sole surviving family member. Though these thoughts betrayed Wakaba’s determination and willingness to die to protect him, he still couldn’t help but feel this way, no matter how he tried. “…I’ve tried so hard to seal the memories of that night away in the bottom of my heart. But I couldn’t do it… Every time something bad happens, I remember it and feel so distraught… I’ve even tried to go to where my sister is, more than once. But…since the Third Eye became part of my body, I met Yumiko, DD, Oli-V, the Professor…and you, Suu… I’ve finally realized that even I can do something for the sake of others. Of course, that’s the power that the Third Eye gave me, not my own strength. And that power might disappear someday. But I think, if there’s anything I can do now… If I can help someone, I want to do it… I want to stand up against evil, like my older sister did back then. So…” He didn’t know if his words were reaching Suu at all. Nevertheless, Minoru earnestly kept trying to put his feelings into words. “……So I’ll believe what you told me, Suu. I’ll do my best to become someone’s hope. And I need your strength for that, Suu… I need you.” Minoru wanted to hug Suu tightly to convey all his thoughts and emotions, but the protective shell’s shape would adjust to match his posture. If he moved both arms now, he would force Suu’s unconscious body to move. So instead, he clasped both her hands tightly as he spoke. “Suu, please come back. To the SFD…to us.” At the same time, he prayed with all his might, deep in his heart. Just as he had when he broke out of Liquidizer’s concrete trap on the first floor of the Syndicate safe house. Please, Wakaa…my sister. If you’re still looking over me…please save this person, the person who saved my life. There was no reason to believe that anything would happen. But in that moment, Minoru felt something. Near the top of his head, something was moving. It wasn’t outside the protective shell. But somehow, somewhere far away from the two-centimeter space of the shell, something was coming closer. Something with no physical substance, yet warm beyond compare, touched Minoru’s and Suu’s heads for an instant, then quickly moved away. Then it made contact again, a little longer this time, and the third time it stayed there. It was as if a young child was placing a hand on an unknown something, trying to ascertain its existence… Then the “hand” permeated inside Suu’s head. At the same time, Minoru thought he heard something. Something mingling with the rhythmic bass sound that was always present inside the shell, like music…or words. Abruptly, Suu’s body quivered. Near Minoru’s ear, he heard the sound of a deep breath. He fought desperately against the reflex to cancel the shell. Because he knew instinctively that whatever was touching Suu’s head was not a bad thing by any means. An unbelievably long moment passed, and the warm presence pulled away from Suu, moved farther off—and vanished. After several deep breaths, Minoru held his breath again and canceled the protective shell. Their bodies fell just a little, sinking into the bed. Minoru hurriedly pulled back and looked at Suu’s face. There was no change. The bandages were still tightly wrapped around her head, of course, and her cheeks were pale as ever, her eyes still closed. Was it all in his mind? The feeling that something had touched their heads, the mysterious voice, the trembling of Suu’s body, the change in her breathing? “……Suu…,” Minoru murmured in a choked voice. Then, in his left hand, he felt her small right hand move stiffly. Her five fingers spread open, entwined with Minoru’s, and grasped his hand. Her long eyelashes began to tremble, lifting little by little. Her eyes flickered twice. Then once more, slowly. Finally, two violet eyes the color of dawn looked into Minoru’s from mere centimeters away. Her small lips moved, and a nearly soundless whisper reached Minoru’s ears. “……I’m back, Minoru.”
Chapter 38
27 min read