In that moment, all the questions in Saki Kawasaki's heart finally found their answers.
Why her sister had taken such an immediate liking to Ye Xing after meeting him just once. Why Keika had repeatedly asked about her opinion of Mask. And why, during the train incident, her sister's first reaction upon discovering the malfunction had been to call Ye Xing.
So...
That's how it was.
All along, the Masked Knight hero that her sister Keika Kawasaki admired, and the big brother she loved clinging to, were one and the same person!
Meanwhile.
The several trucks had closed to within ten metres of where Keika stood motionless.
Their true target was not the little girl blocking the path.
It was the enormous Ferris wheel before them, carrying dozens of passengers.
An amusement park with such thriving business naturally had safety insurance for every attraction.
However...
The park management could never have anticipated that several fully-loaded heavy trucks would charge at full speed toward the Ferris wheel!
If they truly collided, there would be only one outcome.
The Ferris wheel would collapse, and among the passengers, only those in the bottom cabins might have a chance of survival.
The rest would undoubtedly perish.
At this critical moment, a flicker of blazing black flame entered Keika Kawasaki's field of vision.
Other distant visitors noticed the originally clear sky suddenly darken.
A pitch-black lightning bolt, as if descending from the heavens, landed in front of the little girl.
Upon closer inspection, they realised it wasn't lightning at all, but a person clad in a black coat and wearing a pure black mask.
"Big... Masked Knight!"
Seeing the big brother transformed into Mask appear before her, Keika Kawasaki, who had been panicked and helpless moments before, instantly relaxed.
In her heart, whether as Mask or the big brother...
He was the greatest in the world!
"Wall."
Ye Xing's left arm, still covered by the black coat, gently drew the petite Keika Kawasaki into his embrace.
His right hand extended forward as he softly uttered a single word.
Before everyone's eyes, a massive black wall materialised out of thin air, blocking the path of the several large trucks.
BOOM!!!
The fully-loaded trucks—overloaded, in fact—with their accelerators pressed to the floor, crashed into the black wall at tremendous speed.
The sudden impact shook the very ground of the entire amusement park.
The trucks' front ends deformed and crumpled upon impact with the unyielding black wall.
The securely bundled logs they carried tumbled onto the ground.
In such a violent collision, the several trucks were instantly totalled, their fronts twisted into grotesque shapes. The drivers inside, needless to say, were reduced to crushed pulp.
Crimson blood seeped through the twisted steel, dripping onto the shattered ground, forming a dark red stream.
All the visitors who witnessed this scene, including Saki Kawasaki inside the Ferris wheel, fell into silence.
Every gaze was fixed on the space behind that black wall.
What happened?
No...
That little girl, and that mysterious person who suddenly appeared...
Are they still alive?
Probably... impossible...
Looking at the several large trucks that had been crushed into mangled heaps from the massive impact, and the cracked, hardened ground fractured by the collision force, everyone felt extremely heavy-hearted.
Even if they hadn't been directly hit, it was the same principle as trenches on a battlefield.
Many soldiers hiding in trenches didn't die from shrapnel wounds, but were violently shaken to death by the impact force when shells struck their shelters.
And these large trucks fully loaded with heavy logs, colliding at full speed, created an impact far more devastating than artillery shells.
How could anyone possibly survive?
"Oil... there's a fuel leak!"
Someone sharp-eyed among the onlookers noticed that the trucks' fuel tanks had ruptured from the collision damage.
A pungent diesel smell gradually permeated the area.
Large trucks like these, designed for long-distance travel, have fuel tanks with much greater capacity than ordinary family cars.
The diesel leaking from the tanks quickly formed a river-like flow, mixing with the blood on the ground and emitting the scent of impending danger.
"Back... get back!"
Among the tourists present, some who had witnessed serious traffic accidents immediately panicked, pulling their friends to run for cover.
First came the fuel leak.
And vehicles contain not just machinery, but also live electrical wiring.
Just one spark...
Would trigger a massive explosion.
Zzz...
As the tourists fled in panic, trying to reach a safe distance, a broken wire connection emitted a small spark.
Under normal circumstances, this tiny spark would cause no concern - even hitting human skin wouldn't produce any noticeable pain.
But at this moment, it perfectly illustrated that saying:
A single spark can start a prairie fire.
In that instant, time seemed to slow dramatically.
Saki Kawasaki's pupils contracted slightly, her vision suddenly magnifying dozens of times, allowing her to clearly see that glaring spark slowly descending toward the gasoline on the ground.
No matter how much time seemed to stretch, eventually the spark still landed on the gasoline.
BOOM!!!
In a brief moment, amid deafening explosions, a towering sea of flames erupted.
"Come out."
As the blindingly bright, sun-like fireball burst forth, this exceptionally calm voice was clearly audible.
The moment these two words were spoken, the tourists who had retreated dozens of meters away, their eyes filled with fear, shock, and terror, suddenly saw a monster standing six or seven meters tall appear in front of the Ferris wheel.
The monster had no lower body; its upper torso resembled an enlarged human form, with the left side pitch-black like ink and the right side deathly pale, clearly demarcated.
And...
It had no head, only an empty neck with an unnaturally smooth cross-section.
The instant the monster appeared, it leaned forward, extending both its pale and black arms in an embrace-like gesture, and, at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye, gathered the erupting flames into its embrace.
THUD!!!
The monster's body muffled the explosion sound.
The entire amusement park's ground trembled for quite some time.
Through gaps in the monster's covering, visitors saw a dazzling light, as if the sun in the sky had descended to the ground.
Although the fragments from the truck explosion were completely contained, the flames produced by the ignited petrol clung to the headless monster's body like maggots feeding on bones, rapidly rising into a blazing inferno several metres high.
The scorching heat waves from the high temperatures distorted the air.
"That..."
"That little girl..."
"She... won't survive this, right..."
Looking at the blazing inferno, the visitors in the distance wore expressions of deep concern.
How could any human possibly survive such an explosion and intense heat?
Just as everyone was thinking this, and while Saki Kawasaki, inside the Ferris wheel, was feeling despair, they saw a figure dressed in black clothing slowly emerge from the fiery sea.
The intense flames seemed to have no effect on him whatsoever; even his footsteps remained unhurried.
"Disappear."
As Ye Xing softly uttered this, the pale ghost hand... no, what had now evolved to its second stage—the massive black-and-white headless entity—slowly dissipated into the air.
Watching this mysterious person in a black coat and pure black mask emerge directly from the inferno completely unharmed, without even a single tear in his clothing, the visitors were utterly dumbfounded.
"This... this guy... is he a monster!?"
"Wait... what was that thing just now?"
"Did I see things?"
"No... I saw it too, there was a huge black and white headless monster!"
"Wait... this is Mask!"
"Mask? The one from the internet rumours?"
"This guy... actually exists!?"
Although rumours about the mysterious Mask had spread online after the incidents at Kyoto Municipal Kindergarten, the violent gang, and the sudden train malfunction, only a small portion of people had heard about it.
Among them, those who truly believed in Mask's existence were even fewer.
After all, there were also urban legends about Kuchisake-onna and Hachishaku-sama, with more detailed accounts that clearly explained their past lives and reasons for wandering the streets.
Did that mean Kuchisake-onna and Hachishaku-sama actually existed in this world?
Impossible.
But only upon witnessing it with their own eyes did they realise.
Mask wasn't just an urban legend.
At that moment, Ye Xing lifted the hem of his coat.
They saw the petite Keika Kawasaki clinging to him like a koala, perfectly protected by the clothing formed from evil spirit power, without a single burn mark on her body.
"Alright, come out now."
"Mhm mhm"
Keika Kawasaki obediently nodded, emerging from Ye Xing's black coat, and sweetly smiled.
"Thank you, my hero."
"Mm, go wait somewhere safe."
Ye Xing patted Keika Kawasaki's small head, smiled and said this, then suddenly vanished from the scene.
Saki Kawasaki, inside the Ferris wheel carriage, finally breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing her younger sister safe and sound.
Just moments ago, she had experienced a rather peculiar sensation.
It was as if, the moment the sea of flames surged, someone had been whispering something in her ear.
But when she snapped back to reality and saw Mask... no, saw Ye Xing safely escorting her sister away, that faint, elusive voice had vanished without a trace.
Was it an illusion?
Or had she been so tense that she started hearing things?
"That was quite dangerous."
Hearing Ye Xing's suddenly amused voice, Saki Kawasaki jumped in fright, only then realising he had somehow returned to the Ferris wheel carriage.
And had even casually closed the door behind him.
"You... you..."
Saki Kawasaki stared at Ye Xing's relaxed expression, her lips parting as if she had a thousand things to say, yet unsure where to begin.
In the end, she had only one question.
"Did... Keika already know your true identity?"
Contrary to Saki's expectations, Ye Xing shook his head at this question.
"That's not quite accurate."
Saki looked slightly confused.
"What's not accurate about it?"
Ye Xing chuckled softly.
"First of all, unlike that sexy double-chinned fellow from Gotham City, the codename Mask given by the Metropolitan Police Department and those in the know isn't my true identity. It's more like... hmm... a disguise for work."
"Work?"
Saki showed a bitter smile at this.
"You call that work?"
"No different," Ye Xing replied indifferently. "It's still about getting paid and improving my skills in the process. And it's during my spare time outside of classes, so of course it counts as work."
Then he continued, "So your use of 'true identity' isn't quite right. I'm just an ordinary, slightly handsome high school boy."
Saki sighed and retorted, "Your definition of ordinary is really different from mine. You're completely not ordinary at all."
To her surprise, as soon as she finished speaking, Ye Xing nodded repeatedly in agreement.
"As expected of Kawasaki! You saw through my carefully crafted ordinary disguise? It seems you've discovered that I am actually the Chosen One, selected by heaven, possessing unrivalled talent, here to save Kyoto from fire and flood, turning the tide in desperate times, propping up the collapsing edifice, Kyoto's number one eroge shooter, a professional exorcist with an undefeated record, the natural enemy of relationship hellscapes, the destroyer of shipping wars and waifu stocks, the harem king..."
"Stop, stop, stop!"
Seeing Ye Xing getting increasingly absurd, Saki quickly raised her hand to interrupt his casting.
"The beginning was somewhat acceptable, but what's this about an eroge shooter? And harem king? What nonsense is all this!"
While feeling speechless at Ye Xing's abstract nature, Saki also felt somewhat relieved.
Indeed.
Ye Xing was still the same Ye Xing - abstract in personality, always saying ridiculously outrageous things.
Mask...
Really was just one of his identity disguises.
Did this change anything?
Not at all.
Ye Xing was still the one she knew – the person who had helped her, who always had a sharp tongue but was truly gentle at heart.
At this thought, Saki Kawasaki suddenly remembered the most important question.
"Then... those internal members you mentioned during every meeting..."
Ye Xing nodded and smiled.
"Correct, those few are all people who know the truth. The specific situation is somewhat complicated."
Saki Kawasaki glanced out the window. Due to the sudden incident, the Ferris wheel had stopped operating.
The passengers aboard were left hanging in the sky.
"We have plenty of time now. Tell me about it."
"Alright."
...
Half an hour later, with the police who had arrived at the scene taking control and the staff assisting, the passengers trapped on the Ferris wheel finally returned to the ground.
Seeing Saki Kawasaki emerge from the cabin, Keika Kawasaki immediately ran over and hugged her, asking with concern.
"Sister, are you hurt?"
Saki Kawasaki shook her head with a smile, affectionately stroking her younger sister's head.
"What about you? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. The righteous Masked Knight protected me."
Keika Kawasaki – Kyoto's number one solo supporter.
Author: My Favourite Mask.
Soichiro Yagami, who was investigating the scene, inadvertently spotted a very familiar face among the passengers descending from the Ferris wheel and couldn't help but approach curiously.
"Ye Xing? You're here today, too?"
"Chief Yagami."
Ye Xing gave a slight nod, greeting with a smile, and pointed towards Saki Kawasaki and Keika Kawasaki nearby.
"Yes, I came out with my friend and her younger sister to have some fun."
"Friend?"
Looking at Saki Kawasaki's outstanding appearance and tall figure, Soichiro Yagami was momentarily stunned, then frowned slightly and sighed helplessly, thinking to himself that the young man standing before him was quite the player.
The daughter of world-class pianist Youko Touma, and now this girl with a model-like appearance.
Playing both fields, are we?
Just as Soichiro Yagami was thinking this, Saki Kawasaki, holding her sister's hand, walked over. She glanced at him curiously but didn't ask too much, merely showing a gentle smile, a faint blush appearing on her pretty face as she softly said to Ye Xing.
"Well... shall we go home first and wait for you?"
"Alright."
Ye Xing casually replied, then, under Soichiro Yagami's astonished gaze, said something completely unexpected.
"If you have any more questions, you can ask Touma, but she might not fully understand. Anyway, wait until I get back."
"Mm, okay."
After Saki Kawasaki left, Ye Xing turned his attention back to Soichiro Yagami. Seeing the stunned expression on his square-jawed face, he chuckled lightly.
"Chief Yagami? Are you okay?"
Soichiro Yagami belatedly snapped out of it, his gaze towards Ye Xing now extremely complicated.
"Um... that Touma we met last time, does she also live at your place?"
"Indeed."
Ye Xing replied nonchalantly, smiling.
"It's summer holidays now, and since there's plenty of space at home, I invited a few classmates to stay over."
Soichiro Yagami nodded noncommittally, having only one assessment in his heart.
'Well played.'
Good grief, not only playing both fields, but one of them is the daughter of a world-class pianist – and that's not even the whole story.
The key point is, he's openly stepping on two boats while living under the same roof.
Aren't today's high school students playing way too wild?
As for the possibility that it's just pure friendship between Saki Kawasaki and Ye Xing?
How could that be possible?
Soichiro Yagami had been young before, too.
Pure friendship? A boy and a girl riding the Ferris wheel alone together?
What nonsense.
Soichiro Yagami composed himself and looked at Ye Xing, asking in a deep voice,
"During the incident, you were relatively close by. Did you see any suspicious individuals?"