My youth story cannot be a knight war

"Hoshino Aiku Aikai" in the curtain suddenly turned around, a huge black shadow covered his stern expression, and then the red hot flames ignited his pupils.

【“——Tsk!”】

……

"Hey, look at that guy over there! He's the legendary guy, right? The famous super genius from Chiba Prefecture?"

"Is it really him? This is the first time I've seen him in person! Wait... Didn't I remember him going to another school as an exchange student right after he started school last year? Is he back now?"

"Your information is so outdated! He returned to school at the end of last semester, but because the grade had already ended, he only officially resumed his student status this year. I heard that the principal was running around inviting everyone to a celebration banquet just to celebrate his return."

"You said it was too little. And not only that, the principal even had him take the place of this year's top freshman for the speech! He said it was to make up for him not being able to attend his own class's ceremony and leaving to become an exchange student."

"Oh~ Is it so amazing? But I think he looks quite ordinary from behind. He's almost thinner than many girls."

"He's a true genius! He looks just like us, but his brain is completely different from yours, who always just barely passes the test. I heard that even the science department at the University of Tokyo, which is said to be only accessible to aliens, offered him a place, but he was rejected in the end."

"No way... This sounds just like the protagonist of a genius light novel. Why would someone like him attend this school? Wouldn't it be better to just skip a grade and go to a world-renowned university?"

"Who knows? After all, the way a genius thinks is probably completely different from us 'mortals'. Who knows what that guy is thinking..."

"Damn it! I'm so envious! If I had a brain like him, I'd have a harem full of girls in school under the guise of tutoring!"

"Wake up! You almost failed the final test last semester. I circled the key points for you."

……

Is that the person everyone is talking about?

Amid the whispers of the students around him and the principal's speech to the new students at the podium, Hayato Hayama sat in his seat and curiously glanced towards the front of the auditorium.

And it wasn't just him. At this moment, more than half of the people in the auditorium cast their eyes in the same direction. There were all kinds of emotions in these eyes, curiosity, envy, admiration, jealousy... and so on.

And all these eyes were focused on a figure.

Under the podium, in the row of seats reserved for teachers and school staff at the front of the entire auditorium, a figure wearing a Sobu High School uniform sat quietly. Although he was obviously a student, he did not feel out of place when sitting with a group of faculty and staff. Instead, it gave people a sense of harmony as it should be.

This might be related to the aura emanating from that figure's back. A cold, hard, and powerful aura that was different from all the other students emanated from that figure's back, making everyone who saw it unable to help but be attracted by the overwhelming presence.

Ye Shan was no exception. Since he entered school, his school career had always been accompanied by the other party's name, but he had never actually seen the other party even once, which made the curiosity in his eyes even stronger.

In his sight, the figure sitting in the front glanced slightly to the left and right, as if looking for something.

As if she felt a pair of eyes focused on her back, her short black hair swayed for a moment, and then the other party slowly turned his gaze to the back.

At this moment, the principal on the podium stretched out his hand and spoke in a proud tone that everyone could hear. His words echoed throughout the auditorium along with the microphone.

"This concludes my speech. Next, I would like to invite outstanding student representatives from our school. Hi——"

At the same time, Ye Shan also saw it.

he saw...

……

"...!"

Suddenly opening his eyes, Ye Shan, covered in sweat, gasped rapidly and stared blankly upwards.

In front of him was a ceiling full of oldness and an old, outdated pull-cord lamp. Looking at the unfamiliar ceiling, Ye Shan's eyes gradually widened, and the confusion in his eyes was gradually replaced by surprise.

At this moment, countless memories broke through the tiredness of the brain when it just woke up, and turned into pictures flashing before the eyes.

A new day, a chance encounter with an acquaintance, a nightmarish noise, a red dragon...

And, the last cold words:

"Goodbye."

"!--Well!?"

Ye Shan suddenly opened his eyes wide and straightened his upper body from the bed. At the same time, severe pain came from the right side of his waist. Caught off guard, Ye Shan pressed his hand in the direction of the pain.

But just when he stretched out halfway, another white hand pressed down Ye Shan's hand, and the other hand on his shoulder exerted force at the same time, pushing Ye Shan back onto the bed.

"do not move!"

When Ye Shan was subconsciously trying to struggle, the urgent female voice in his ear made him stop. He blinked and looked at the slender face so close to him, and his expression became dazed again.

"You, you! What the hell is this place... Ugh!"

"Don't move. Your wound has just been bandaged. If you move too much, it might tear open."

The girl with long black hair said this. Ye Shan glanced down after hearing this and was shocked to find that he was naked with a thick layer of bandage wrapped around his waist and abdomen. The bandage wrapped around the right side of his abdomen had been stained from its original white color to a bright red due to the blood seeping from underneath.

"I remember now...it's you?"

Feeling the pain in his side, Ye Shan finally remembered everything that had happened before. He stared at the familiar black-haired woman in front of him and spoke in a dull tone:

"You are, the girl from before..."

"Well, thank you for saving me... and I'm so sorry!"

Hikigaya Komachi nodded in response to Hayama's words. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she looked at the man covered in wounds on the bed in front of her, her eyes and tone filled with deep guilt.

"I'm so sorry. You were the one who saved me, but what Aqua did to you afterwards... I'm sorry. I really don't know what to say."

"Aqua?"

When Yeshan heard the name said by Hikigaya Komachi, he was stunned. Who is this?

This question was answered in the next second.

"Yo~"

A calm male voice came from the doorway. Both people in the room turned their heads to the side at the same time, just in time to meet a pair of blue eyes that were sparkling with a strange light.

A blond man in white jeans and a black T-shirt leaned against the door frame. He had bandages on his forehead and cheeks. He looked at the two of them with a calm expression and waved hello as if nothing had happened.

"Looks like this guy is awake, Komachi."

"It's you!?"

Before Hikigaya Komachi could respond, Hayama suddenly tensed up and stared at the handsome man at the door of the room.

He had never seen this man, but he had heard this voice not long ago!

This man's voice was exactly the same as that of the black knight who had wanted to kill him before!

The real fear of being almost killed at that moment came to his mind, and this fear quickly turned into burning anger under the fuel of surging emotions. Ye Shan, who was furious, reached out to lift the quilt on his legs and subconsciously touched his right trouser pocket.

This time, he touched nothing. Ye Shan shifted his gaze in astonishment, and Hoshino's voice came again.

"Is this what you're looking for?"

Hoshino raised his right hand with an indifferent look, and the black card box engraved with a golden dragon head emblem swayed at his fingertips, immediately attracting Ye Shan's attention.

"That dragon of yours nearly burned us both to charcoal with its flames earlier. But seriously, giving such a powerful contracted beast to someone like you is a complete waste."

"Give it back to me—ugh!"

Without caring about anything, Ye Shan, who was angered by his frivolous words and actions, stood up despite the pain in his waist and walked towards Hoshino to snatch the card box back from his hand.

However, he had barely taken three steps when the intense pain, far exceeding the previous one, forced Ye Shan to stop in his tracks. He knelt on the ground, covering the wound on his waist, with fine beads of cold sweat oozing from his lowered forehead.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to take this card box back? It's right here, come and get it."

Hoshino squatted down, his eyes level with Ye Shan who raised his head in front of him. He shook the card box in his hand under his angry gaze, and a slightly provocative smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"But you can't even stand steadily now. I think it's better to forget it. How about you just hand over this card box to me now, and then I'll take you out of here?"

He said with a smile, spreading his hands.

"Treat today's experience as a nightmare, and forget about having this card box. Go home and have a good sleep, and then wake up tomorrow to a brand new life~"

"How is it? The life log I planned for you sounds good, right?"

"...You're a complete scumbag villain, my future brother."

Looking at "Hoshino Aikyuu Aikai" in the curtain, whose expression and tone almost wrote the words "democrat" on her face, Ruby's originally clear eyes were completely dead.

She could already imagine what kind of looks she would receive if she went out with her brother in the future, so she covered her cheeks with her hands and rolled over on the soft sofa while wailing violently.

"Ahhhhh!!! My future brother, how did you become like this?! Mom would cry if she knew! She would definitely cry!"

"Mo~ Can't you just learn from Mr. Kousaka and Mr. Zaimokuza! Why do you have to imitate that damned Zero's tone of voice? Even your smile is so similar! Why did you grow up like this!? It's over, I won't have a sister-in-law anymore! Wuwuwu..."

"What nonsense are you talking about!"

Covering his wound, Ye Shan looked at Hoshino with eyes that almost burst into flames. He couldn't understand why the man in front of him could act so naturally after almost killing him.

"Nonsense? I think I should have made myself clear, right?"

The smile on the corner of his mouth slowly faded. Hoshino stood up again and looked down at Ye Shan. There was no smile in his eyes anymore, only coldness and indifference.

"Then I'll make it clearer. Give up your knighthood and get out of this—"

"enough!"

Hikigaya Komachi snatched the card box from Hoshino's hand with one hand, and stared at Hoshino with a solemn expression, with a clear fire burning in the depths of her eyes.

"Aqua, you're really going too far!"

"Yes, yes, okay, I won't say anything."

Avoiding Hikigaya Komachi's stern gaze, Hoshino shrugged and turned around, leaning his back against the two of them and stopping talking.

"I'm sorry, that's just Aqua's personality. He doesn't mean any harm, he's just not very good at talking."

Squatting down, the girl handed the card box to Ye Shan, biting her lip and speaking apologetically.

"...I think, young lady, you might have some misunderstanding about the words 'no ill intentions', because your friend wasn't burning a painting or breaking a vase, he almost killed me!"

Reaching out and taking the card box from Hikigaya Komachi, Ye Shan stared at her intently, then glanced at the figure at the door. The fire in his eyes was slightly extinguished under the restraint of reason.

"If you really want to apologize on behalf of your friend, could you please tell me what exactly happened?"

"No problem... because I also happen to have something I want to ask you."

Having said that, Hikigaya Komachi paused. She looked at Hayama with a very strange look and spoke with a slightly hesitant tone.

"...Senior Hayama."

"Wait…you know my name?"

Ye Shan was really stunned when he heard the girl he had never met before actually said his last name and even used the respectful title of "senior".

"As expected, it is really you, Senior Ye Shan."

After receiving confirmation from the person involved, Hikigaya Komachi breathed a sigh of relief. This time, the look she gave Hayama was filled with anticipation and anxiety.

"It's our first meeting... well, it's not really our first meeting. I've met you, Ye Shan-senpai, before, but I don't think you know me, right?"

"You, could it be..."

Glancing up and down at the girl in front of him who was dressed simply, especially her face, Ye Shan felt a strange sense of familiarity spreading in his heart.

"Yes, like you, Senior Hayama, I used to be a student at Sobu High School, two years younger than you."

"A student from Sobu High School?"

"..."

Upon hearing that the two were alumni of the same school, Hoshino, who was leaning against the door frame, couldn't help but turn his head and glance at them, with an unconcealable surprise in his eyes.

Staring blankly at Hikigaya Komachi with a serious expression, Yeshan felt an unspeakable strangeness in his heart - he felt that his junior schoolmate looked very familiar.

No, not to her, but to another person. The girl in front of him and another face in Ye Shan's memory have a very similar overlap.

That person is, is——

"Senior, please forgive me for asking you a question first, because I really want to know something."

Hikigaya Komachi suddenly put her hands on Hayama's shoulders, stared into his dark eyes, and asked nervously.

"Senior Ye Shan, have you seen my brother recently——"

"Hikigaya Hachiman?"]

9. A Different New World (5K)

[There are some people in this world who are born like a flying bird of prey, passing through everyone's life, but leaving a ripple in the river of these people's memories that can never be calmed down.