Yandere? Menhera? Bring It On, If You're Confident That I'll love You For Who You Are - Chapter 46

The Heart They Shattered

“Huh? Heart?”

“Yes. The one thing that the old Minato had that the current Minato does not. Although, I’m the one who destroyed it.”

Up close, Kanade’s expression appeared unchanged.

But perhaps because she used to be by my side, her eyes seemed to brim with a certain sadness. At least they weren’t clouded like Rio’s, which I had become so tired of seeing.

If I had to describe it, it felt like her eyes conveyed a sense of regret.

“(Regret? Her?)”

For a moment, I questioned myself. Up until now, she had never given up no matter the difficulty. Born into the privileged Asagami Group and taught by her father never to fear defeat and always to win in the end, she had always obtained what she wanted by any means necessary.

Was such a woman truly capable of feeling regret?

“Still, heart, huh? I never thought you’d be the one to bring up such a topic.”

“…Are you trying to bring things back to your own pace, simply because you don’t want to lose your everyday life?”

Her words seemed to see right through me, and I fixed my gaze on her. It looked like this wouldn’t be straightforward after all.

And just as I had steeled myself, Kanade forcibly turned my body to face her and wrapped her hands around my face.

An unprecedented situation. I was taken aback, as if a mother was comforting her young child.

“…You’re strong, Minato. You treat me the same even after I tried to kill Rio and took care of uncles. Borrowing Hina’s words, I’d want to ask what kind of mental strength do you have… But still, people have emotions, they have hearts. That thing you discarded back then…”

“… …”

“Heart isn’t fair at all. Pleasure and success become memories of the past, yet contrasting emotions don’t apply. The scars on the heart from the past, even if the grudge is avenged, the traces don’t disappear. The girls whom I unwittingly saved were already broken by the time I realized it. I might have been the one to do that. So, this is a punishment. What was truly needed was absolute composure. The power and the insight to see through overwhelming strength and madness.”

“… …”

“That’s your thought process. The Kurogane Minato that we changed. Right?”

“Heh…”

Her accurate predictions, almost like clairvoyance, made me close my eyes and send her a round of silent applause.

“I completely underestimated you. I didn’t realize you saw through me that much. Well, that doesn’t mean everything will go smoothly.”

“Yeah, I know. When you said Rio was restrained, I felt a definite murderous intent from you. No matter how much you lie to your heart, what you want to protect is your everyday life. Otherwise, you wouldn’t bother trying to save me.”

“Give me a break…”

To be hit so accurately on my inner feelings, there was no privacy left for me.

The words of that woman when we first faced each other came back to me.

“Especially after your sister arrived, that life changed drastically. On the surface, you show an arrogant and lofty impression while trying to maintain your everyday life as usual. Where is the true heart of Kurogane-kun, I wonder?”

Was that woman aware all along, for over a year now?

Of the very thing I tried to discard from my past…

“…This is everything I can convey to you now. The struggle of a loser. Can I ask one last thing? What did the ‘real Minato’ think of me?”

Looking at the clock in the room, less than five minutes remained. Perhaps I had indulged too much in reminiscing.

Even if it’s one minute late—no, even one second—Rio would break through the door to separate us.

I distanced my body, which was close to Kanade’s, and stood up from the sofa.

As a result, I faced Kanade directly.

Looking at her, I saw her with a gloomy expression, looking down. Despite feeling slightly surprised, I continued the conversation.

“Well… I don’t think I’ve ever hated you, not now, not ever.”

“…”

Perhaps it wasn’t the answer she expected, as Kanade looked up in surprise.

“I’m pretty sure I never told you. The scar on Rio’s neck, it wasn’t from the aunt and uncle you bribed. If my hypothesis is correct, she intended to frame them, or maybe even you, as the perpetrator.”

“Eh…?”

Kanade looked at me with astonishment. It seems she hadn’t grasped that much.

Just as Kanade said, at the time, she intended to plant a false impression on me to sever the relationship between me and Kanade, and patch things up with false promises, but all efforts ended in miserable failure.

And yet, the goddess of victory smiled upon the sister who never ceased her efforts.

“You get it by now. Sooner or later, I would have ended up killing them. It was just a matter of whether you or they would trigger it. Didn’t I say it before? I don’t hold a grudge.”

There was no lie in my words.

I was attracted to the girl in front of me, and we became lovers. From that moment, this outcome was determined.

If only I had noticed Rio’s heart screaming out sooner…

If only I had realized Kanade’s twisted feelings…

If only I hadn’t dated Kanade…

If only I had noticed before Hina broke…

If only I had done this or that…

It’s no exaggeration to say that this is the most trivial regret experienced by the most people in the world, and ironically, it’s this trivial regret that slowly tempers the human heart.

Only after fully digesting one’s regrets can one avoid repeating the same mistakes and reexamine oneself.

I was one of those people.

The girls I unwittingly saved were already broken by the time I realized it.

Because I was the one who caused it…

“I was completely smitten once. It’s not so easy to simply hate a woman like that. Even if betrayed. I may have felt melancholic, but I couldn’t muster any hatred. What’s that called? Indecisiveness?”

Kanade said nothing. She couldn’t say anything.

“Kidding. I remember you told Rio, right? You have no intention of giving up on me. Being adored by such a beautiful girl, I should be happy about it, but given the situation, I have no intention of dating anyone. Of course, I don’t intend to get back together with you either.”

I turned my back. The agreed time was just a few seconds away.

“In the end, our feelings are parallel lines. I’ve said this before, but I don’t like you anymore. So at least, I’ll wait for you. I have my share of responsibility. When you come back, it wouldn’t be bad to start over as old friends from scratch… right?”

With a light wave of my hand, I left the room.

What kind of expression is Kanade making now? What is she thinking?

Are her eyes clouded like the other girls’? Are her eyes lacking light, like the other girls’?

Were her eyes filled with warmth—the one thing that once attracted me?

As I reached for the doorknob, I tilted my head.

Her expression was exactly as I had hoped.

I couldn’t help but smile. I had done everything I could. Now, all that’s left is to wait for the outcome.