"Oh, you mean this…"
Facing the Wakaba Mutsumi's doubt, Kamijou Mutsuki showed a bright, easygoing smile.
"It's been like this since that time. Normal condition."
Kamijou Mutsuki's hand tremor was completely normal—on the contrary, if his hands ever suddenly got better for no reason, that would be when he should start panicking.
"Normal…"
Hearing this, the Wakaba Mutsumi's gaze became somewhat subtle.
Looking at Kamijou Mutsuki's hands trembling so badly he could probably inherit the title of Sorcerer Supreme, she really didn't think this situation was "normal" at all.
However, the girl quickly caught the key point in Kamijou Mutsuki's words.
"That time refers to…?"
"It was just a car accident."
No, no, no—this was absolutely not something that could be described with the prefix "just"!
Watching Kamijou Mutsuki say it so lightly, the Wakaba Mutsumi couldn't help thinking this inwardly.
"Don't worry,"
As if to reassure the girl in front of him, Kamijou Mutsuki raised his thumb.
"A mere fatal injury—no big deal at all!"
"..."
What kind of language is that? It feels so niche.
The Wakaba Mutsumi felt that sometimes she was really quite helpless. Seriously—this guy had clearly gone through something as tragic as a car accident, so why was it that she couldn't muster even a shred of sympathy?
"Then your hands…"
After all, the person in front of her was her fiancé. Kind-hearted by nature, the Wakaba Mutsumi still expressed concern.
"If the doctor wasn't lying to me, then it's probably incurable…"
Kamijou Mutsuki himself, however, looked completely unconcerned.
"And your parents also…?"
"You mean those two old men?"
When the Wakaba Mutsumi brought up his parents, Kamijou Mutsuki suddenly changed his tone.
"In that regard, I'm actually quite similar to you…"
"You too…?"
Kamijou Mutsuki's words sounded somewhat disjointed, but the Wakaba Mutsumi understood their meaning instantly.
"The two old men in my family are also nowhere to be seen all year round—though at least they don't pressure me as hard as yours do."
"..."
For some reason, the Wakaba Mutsumi felt a vague sense of shared misery.
So she and Kamijou Mutsuki… were actually the same?
But just as the girl was thinking this—
"However, after the car accident, things were different. Those two old men…"
"It was because… Mutsuki got into a car accident…"
The Wakaba Mutsumi addressed others very directly; unlike Anon, she didn't like giving people nicknames.
After hesitating for a moment, she still chose the same form of address Sakiko and Soyo used.
After all, he was her fiancé—being too distant would make her earlier words seem insincere.
"So, Mutsuki's parents…"
Even she herself didn't notice that a faint, almost imperceptible trace of anticipation had appeared in her eyes, as if she were seeing her own reflection in the young man.
"…started caring about Mutsuki?"
"No. They died."
"..."
The Wakaba Mutsumi felt as though the heart she'd been holding up had finally died completely.
She had actually felt a sense of resonance with the guy in front of her just now—what an idiot!
At the same time, the way she looked at Kamijou Mutsuki could only be described as strange.
How could he say something like that with such a natural expression?
Had his family relationships really deteriorated to this extent?
She suddenly felt that her own family situation didn't seem so bad after all.
"Don't look at me like that…"
Kamijou Mutsuki had clearly seen through what the Wakaba Mutsumi was thinking.
"My relationship with them wasn't very good, but it wasn't like we were enemies either."
In this life, Kamijou Mutsuki's parents, due to a marriage of convenience, didn't have much affection for each other, and cared even less about him as their son.
But at the very least, they had never mistreated him when it came to material needs.
"But, well, people always have to move forward."
"They were in the car accident together with me. I was just harder to kill."
"After that, I also looked into it. It really was just a simple accident… I guess life is just like that."
"If they really did have even a bit of affection for me… they probably wouldn't want me to be stuck in the past."
Most importantly, it seemed that the system, in order to repay Kamijou Mutsuki's karmic burden, had intervened and helped reincarnate the two old men into another world.
Specifically, they seemed to have been sent to Terra to become the Emperor's chosen. Although he had no idea when Arknights had introduced a god called the Emperor, a Chosen was still a Chosen—by any measure, they were probably living more comfortably than he was. Consider it the final bit of filial piety from him as their son.
With a son like him, it really was their blessing!
"…I can't understand it."
The Wakaba Mutsumi said softly, her emotions extremely complicated.
She truly couldn't understand how Kamijou Mutsuki could remain so optimistic after going through something like that.
Even her own childhood friend—gentle, kind Sakiko—had changed into someone she barely recognized after her family's misfortune.
"But if you think about it carefully, the Wakaba Mutsumi and I are actually pretty similar."
Perhaps sensing that her mood had grown a little heavy, Kamijou Mutsuki changed the subject.
"You and I both come from very wealthy families…"
Not as wealthy as yours.
"Our parents are both rarely around…"
"Our names both have a 'Mutsu' in them…"
That one was a bit of a stretch.
"And we both have a childhood friend—and both childhood friends have blue hair."
As he said this, even Kamijou Mutsuki himself felt that the coincidence was a bit much.
Could it really be fate?
"Childhood friend?"
However, the Wakaba Mutsumi immediately caught the key point in his words.
In that instant, even her golden eyes seemed to ignite.
If you are a dragon, then so be it.
"She doesn't compare to Sakiko—just a fool, really…"
Watching Kamijou Mutsuki casually smile as he mentioned that childhood friend, the Wakaba Mutsumi felt inexplicably uncomfortable.
"Mutsuki and your childhood friend… are you very close?"
Naturally, she wasn't jealous—at least, the current Wakaba Mutsumi probably didn't even understand what "jealousy" was.
But this clumsy, somewhat stiff girl had already more or less accepted that Kamijou Mutsuki would be her future husband.
Seeing her future husband show that kind of expression for another girl, she instinctively felt uncomfortable.
Even dolls… have possessiveness.
"Probably about the same as you and The-Sakiko-sensei."
However, Kamijou Mutsuki proceeded to pour oil on the fire.
"I'll marry her in the future."
"?"
Wait—what are you saying in front of your fiancée?
"Of course, the same goes for you, Wakaba Mutsumi."
He looked at the girl and said it as if it were common sense.
"I'll marry both of you!"
"…I'm full."
If The-Sakiko-sensei were to see the Wakaba Mutsumi right now, she'd probably be shocked to discover that even dolls can get angry.
Even Kamijou Mutsuki himself was a little surprised by the girl's reaction.
When had her affection level gotten this high?
Or was it that the Wakaba Mutsumi's personality wasn't as emotionless as he'd thought?
"Wait, Wakaba Mutsumi."
However, seeing the girl about to leave the table, he reached out and stopped her.
"What is it?"
The Wakaba Mutsumi actually turned around, giving him face.
"Tomorrow, tell Soyo to go to RiNG after school. You're coming too."
He'd forgotten to exchange LINE with Soyo back at RiNG earlier.
But he didn't mind—Soyo would definitely be more anxious than he was.
"?"
After that, the Wakaba Mutsumi didn't say another word to Kamijou Mutsuki.
PS: After writing the Wakaba Mutsumi for more than three chapters, it's finally done. This chapter is mainly about developing the protagonist, especially his childhood friend… I've basically spelled it out already—everyone should be able to guess who it is, right?
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