Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/822139843121925685/episodes/822139844220087137
One day like that.
A visitor came to the hospital room.
“――Senpai! Long time no see!”
Standing beyond the open door was a silver-haired, innocent-looking girl――Karen.
She appeared energetically, holding something like a blue notebook in her left hand.
“K-Karen…! It’s been quite a while…!”
“Ahaha, sorry… I’ve been kinda busy lately and couldn’t make it to visit…”
Karen scratched her head, looking a little apologetic—
“—But don’t worry! I’m not busy anymore, so I can spend as much time with you as I want, Senpai!”
She said it with an expression even more full of energy than the last time I saw her.
“I see… So you came to visit me normally today, then?”
“Yes! I came to see my favorite boyfriend!”
Saying that, Karen ran towards me—and dove into my chest.
“Guh… Hey… Karen…?”
“Hehe… It’s been so long, Senpai…! suhaaaaa”
“Hey, hey?! Don’t suck people…!”
“Haha, it’s fine. It’s not like it’s going to run out or anything…!”
“My sanity is really waning right now though…?!”
I grabbed Karen’s shoulders and managed to pry her off.
“Come on… you’re being so cold. Is that how you treat your girlfriend?”
“When did Karen become my girlfriend?”
“Eh…?! Th-then… does that mean… I’m actually a guy…!?”
Karen’s eyes widened in sudden shock.
“No way! I meant we’re not dating!”
“Hehe, I know that. I was just teasing a little…! Senpai, you’re really cute~”
Karen’s hand kept stroking my head over and over.
What a cheeky junior…!
But… I was glad Karen was acting normal.
I felt incredibly relieved.
For the past few days, I hadn’t heard from Karen at all.
On top of that, her parting words were, “Do you know about the ‘All Heroines Die Ending’?”
…No, that’s just terrifying.
Questions remained—like when and where Karen learned that game term—but I had a feeling our usual daily life was about to return.
“—Even so, no petting me.”
I brushed Karen’s hand away…
“Mouu… you’re such a shy one.”
Saying that, Karen puffed out her cheeks.
Karen reluctantly let go of my hand… then suddenly looked startled, as if remembering something.
“Oh! I forgot to tell you…! That thing you asked me to do the other day? I’ve pretty much finished preparing it!”
“…Huh? You… you already prepared it?”
“Yes! This kind of thing is a breeze for me!”
Karen puffed out her chest, looking smug and confident.
“So… I can go to school…!”
“That’s right…! I’m looking forward to the school where Senpai is!”
What I had asked Karen before.
It was… that I wanted to attend high school.
I myself had gone to high school in my previous life, but I died before graduating.
That’s precisely why I wanted to attend high school until graduation in this life, at least.
“So… maybe the reason Karen’s been so busy lately… was to prepare for me to go to high school?”
“Hmm, yeah. That’s about right!”
Karen placed her hand over her mouth and answered with childlike innocence.
Oh, I see. So that’s what it was.
…If only I could have thought that.
There was something I couldn’t understand.
“But… then why did you go silent? Yukina and Tsukino said they couldn’t get in touch with you?”
“…Ah, right. Come to think of it, that’s true.”
Karen lowered her eyes slightly and murmured softly.
“To explain the reason for that, I need to tell you the main reason I came to see you today, Senpai.”
“…The main reason?”
“Yes! The reason I came to see you today, Senpai.”
“Um… wasn’t it just to visit?”
I could feel goosebumps rising and the blood draining from my body.
“It was a visit, but… more than that, I wanted to tell you something today, Senpai.”
“…? Tell me… what?”
After a brief silence, Karen looked straight at me.
Then, her eyes flickered faintly, and she flashed a bewitching smile—
“Of course—it’s about why I know about the ‘All Heroines Die Ending’.”
—She spun despair.
All strength drained from my body.
It was the very thing I most wanted to ask Karen—and simultaneously the one thing I least wanted to hear.
Hearing it felt like the peace I’d finally grasped would vanish somewhere.
“…Huh? Did you not want to hear it, Senpai…?”
“…It’s fine. Please, I want to know.”
But having come this far, I had no choice but to ask.
When I answered with a serious look… Karen chuckled softly.
“Hehe… Senpai, aren’t you overreacting a bit?”
“…Huh?”
“It’s not like I’m going to tell you anything that big, you know? The reason I know about the ‘All Heroines Die Ending’ is simply because… I heard about it from another reincarnator besides you.”
“Huh?! So… there really were other reincarnated people besides me…”
“Yes. I got a call from that reincarnated person a little while ago. They asked me to ask you if you knew about the ‘All Heroines Die Ending’.”
“…I see.”
The reason that reincarnated person asked Karen to do that became clear once I thought about it.
Probably… seeing me acting against the scenario, the reincarnated person wanted to determine if I was one too.
That’s why they used Karen.
“But… ? I told you I didn’t know anything about the ‘All Heroines Die Ending’…”
When I said that, Karen giggled softly.
“I can see right through all your lies, Senpai. …Because I’ve seen you lie so many times, I remember everything—your mannerisms, the tone of your voice, even the slightest movement of your eyes when you lie.”
I couldn’t quite hear it, but Karen muttered something under her breath at the end.
“Oh… really…? Seriously…?”
Somehow… I’m starting to lose confidence in myself.
So… I’m that easy to read, huh…
“But… then, why have you been out of contact lately, Karen…?”
“Ahaha, well… that’s because I went to meet that reincarnated person and heard their story.”
“Y-You actually met them!?”
“Yes… I was also curious about that ‘All Heroines Die Ending’…”
Then, Karen looked at me with a serious expression.
“And I learned… that this world is a gal game, that the three of us are the heroines of that world—and that we were almost hit by a car because we were heading towards that ‘All Heroines Die Ending’…”
“Huh… I see. You knew everything.”
“Yes… I wanted to know. As someone whose life you risked yours to save, I needed to understand what drove you to save us…”
Karen twisted her face in apology—
“—I’m truly sorry… for hiding everything all this time…”
—She bowed her head sharply.
“Karen…”
“I… made you worry, didn’t I? Tsukino-chan said in her email… that you’d been troubled by something for a long time…”
Karen continued speaking, her head still bowed.
Her voice… trembled faintly.
“That’s probably… my fault, right? Because I left saying those meaningless words… I made Senpai suffer even more… I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”
I see…
So… that’s what it was.
“…Karen. Could you… lift your face?”
“…Yes.”
Her face was a mess—like she was about to cry, like she was in pain.
I took Karen’s hand… gently cupping it with both of mine.
“Karen.”
“Yes…”
“—Thanks for telling me.”
“Sen…pai…”
“But… me hiding things all by myself… I guess I can’t really forgive that either. I wish you hadn’t kept it all bottled up inside. I wish you’d talked to me more.”
“… You’re right. I’m sorry… Senpai. Next time I have something troubling me… I’ll make sure to talk to you about it.”
Karen bowed her head again.
She seemed genuinely remorseful.
There was no trace of falsehood in her words.
I took Karen’s hand… and pulled her toward me.
Then, Karen lost her balance and fell, burying her face into my chest.
“S-Senpai?!”
“Just for today. It’s special.”
I wrapped my arms around Karen’s back and held her gently.
For a moment, Karen resisted… but soon, as if giving up, she relaxed her strength and surrendered herself to me.
I stroked Karen’s back like soothing a baby.
“…Senpai, that’s unfair.”
Karen murmured, like water spilling from an overflowing cup.
“…Why…can you…accept me like this…”
Karen gripped my clothes and lifted her face.
The same expression as before—on the verge of tears, pained.
Yet, deep within her eyes, there wasn’t a single trace of darkness.
Then, as if a dam had burst, tears streamed down Kareha’s face—
“This…just makes me…like you…even more…”
She buried her face in my chest… and cried.
She cried like a baby.
Yozakura Karen is a strong girl.
For her goals, she can brilliantly play any role, and she can solve problems all by herself.
But at the same time, she’s fragile and ephemeral.
She… didn’t know how to rely on anyone, because she carried everything on her own shoulders.
That’s the difference between Tsukino, Yukina, and Karen.
They also tend to shoulder things alone… but with Karen, she hides even her suffering behind a forced cheerfulness so no one will worry.
I silently kept stroking Karen’s back.
“—But listen, Karen.”
I stopped stroking her and called her name.
Then, looking straight into Karen’s puzzled eyes—
“Not just future worries—could you talk to me about the troubles you’re carrying right now too?”
—I said slowly.
“…What do you mean?”
“Karen… You’re still hiding something, aren’t you?”
“…”
Karen’s eyes flickered slightly, as if she was unsettled.
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