Nao had no idea that Otosaka Yuu would one day acquire the power to take over the world, nor did she know that Hakuto was already prepared to confront him.
"Relax, relax. Even if the sky falls, I won't let you, someone with the power to erase her presence, take the hit."
Hakuto downed the soda in his hand in one gulp, then casually tossed the empty can into a nearby trash bin.
"Huh? You think abilities have different ranks in terms of importance?"
"It's not really about ranking..." Hakuto smiled. "It's like a group of scientists—if they had to choose between the two of us for research, who do you think they'd pick?"
"So you're saying that, in the eyes of those scientists, you're more valuable than me?"
"I'm saying that as long as nothing happens to me, you'll always be safe."
Nao glanced at Hakuto beside her. In a way, what he said wasn't wrong.
No matter the circumstances, as long as Hakuto was there, nothing would happen to her.
In every possible sense.
"Alright, time to head to Otosaka Shunsuke..."
"He might already be resting."
"Then we'll wake him up. I don't want to waste my vacation."
Hakuto straddled his motorcycle, adjusting the helmet on the rearview mirror before putting it on.
Nao tossed her half-finished soda into the trash and accepted the helmet Hakuto handed her, then got onto the back seat.
"Do you need me to guide you?" Nao asked, not wanting him to use his supercomputer-like calculation ability.
"No need..." Hakuto shook his head.
"By the way, President, did you know that aside from that drenched assistant at school, there's also a blonde girl who's been following us around?"
"Huh?"
"Forget it. You'll find out soon enough." Hakuto waved his hand dismissively. Right now, Nao was still in the dark—she didn't even know the assistant's true identity.
Just as Hakuto turned the key and prepared to accelerate, his phone suddenly rang.
Ring ring~ Beep beep~
"This late? Who could it be?"
He removed his helmet, took out his phone from his bag, glanced at the caller ID, and answered.
"Hello... Hakuto-nii..." As soon as the call connected, Ayumi's voice came through.
"What's wrong, Ayumi? Calling this late?"
Something felt off to Hakuto. Ayumi's voice sounded rushed, like she had just been startled, completely different from her usual energetic tone.
He looked at Nao sitting behind him, then switched to speaker mode.
"Hakuto-nii, I just had a nightmare..." Ayumi's voice still carried traces of fear.
"A nightmare? Where's Yuu? Isn't he with you?"
"Onii-chan didn't come home today. He said he had something to do at school..."
Normally, Ayumi wouldn't have wanted to trouble Hakuto over something as trivial as a nightmare.
But when she woke up in fright, she instinctively remembered what he had told her a few days ago.
"No matter what happens, don't panic. Just come to me, Hakuto-nii."
So, she made the call.
"Wait there, I'm coming over."
"It's really okay, Hakuto-nii. I'm just a little scared..."
"It's fine. Just stay put and wait for me."
Without giving Ayumi a chance to refuse, Hakuto ended the call.
Then, he turned to Nao, who was giving him a questioning look.
(눈_눈)?
"Why are you looking at me?"
"Why isn't Otosaka Yuu home?"
"Huh? How should I know?" Nao frowned. "That assistant came by again this morning, but I was in a rush to find you, so I left the matter to Takajo..."
She suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
"Takajo... Takajo?!"
"Takajou took Otosaka Yuu away?"
Jojiro didn't know that Ayumi was sick with a fever at home, nor was he aware of the danger of her collapse ability.
With both Nao and Hakuto absent, Jojiro had naturally chosen to rely on Otosaka Yuu's ability to handle a newly emerged ability user.
Which was why Ayumi was home alone now and had called Hakuto.
"Wait, Otosaka Yuu, the ultimate siscon, actually accepted a request from Takajo while his little sister was sick?" Hakuto found it unbelievable.
"Takajo didn't know about Ayumi's condition?"
"I rushed to find you the moment I got the news, thinking you could handle it... but who knew you'd be stuck in a battlefield all day..." Nao shook her head. "This was my mistake..."
"No, it was mine... But whatever, there's no point in arguing."
Hakuto put his helmet back on and changed his destination from Otosaka Shunsuke's place to Otosaka Ayumi's.
"When I find Otosaka Yuu, I'm giving him a beating for Ayumi..." Hakuto muttered to himself.
Unlike Otosaka Shunsuke, he didn't have the same big-picture mindset—the ability to prioritize greater goals over his own sister.
Even if he had memory leap, Hakuto felt he could never do what Shunsuke did.
They were fundamentally different.
Hakuto prioritized himself, while Yuu was selfless.
A complete mismatch in perspectives.
And Hakuto didn't need to understand him. In some ways, Shunsuke had lived for almost a hundred years—there was already a generational gap.
That was the difference between them: one was self-centered, the other devoted to the greater good.
Before long, Hakuto and Nao arrived at the school dormitory where the Otosaka siblings lived.
At the apartment entrance—
"President, do you have a spare key?"
"Hmm? Isn't Ayumi home?"
"I just don't want to wake her if she's asleep..."
Before Hakuto could finish his sentence, the door slowly creaked open, revealing a small figure in pajamas.
"Hakuto-nii... and Nao-nee?"
"It's me."
"Good evening, Ayumi."
It was none other than Otosaka Ayumi. Hakuto hadn't even knocked yet, and she had already opened the door.
He crouched down, gently patting her head.
"Can't sleep?"
"No... I was waiting for you, Hakuto-nii. I didn't expect Nao-nee to come too."
"I had something to do and happened to be with him, so I came along," Nao made up an excuse, avoiding any mention of the psychiatric hospital, Tomori Kazuki, or Otosaka Shunsuke—none of which Ayumi needed to know right now.
"Let's go inside. It's getting cold out."
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