Zongman: Unknowingly trapped in the hatchet

?

Time passes unconsciously.

The moon and the sun together divide the world into two halves, with a clear boundary.

At that time, the clear blue sky had already turned a deep red.

"Almost... time to go back."

Yukino glanced at her phone. It was almost time to make dinner.

"Huh? Time goes by so fast."

Yui had a silly expression on her face, completely unaware of the passage of time, and then she said in surprise.

The white stripes on her head flew and fell like snow as she moved.

"puff……"

Yukino couldn't help but smiled unkindly and kindly picked some for him.

They arrived at Hikigaya's house around two o'clock, and it was now nearly five o'clock.

As it is late autumn, the sky will soon turn dark if we don’t go back.

"Would you like to stay for dinner? I don't think I've treated you all well today, so let's have hot pot together tonight. Isn't this a good suggestion, Komachi?"

Although Komachi is still a senior in high school, thanks to her personality, she already has the demeanor of a hostess.

After all, you can't expect someone to perform the so-called art of hospitality, right?

"This……"

Yukino seemed a little hesitant.

"Let's eat together?"

Unexpectedly, Ayaka also tried to persuade him to stay.

It's just not clear in what capacity she said this.

Hachiman scratched his face and said nothing, obviously not used to this kind of occasion.

Or maybe the two of them have already said everything they needed to say.

"Well...I need to ask my mom if she cooked more rice for me."

Most of them live alone, so they are relatively free, but Yui has more to consider.

"You guys eat, I'll go back and eat."

Hearing Su Qing's refusal, Hachiman was the first to ask in confusion, "Don't you live alone? Just stay at my house and eat. After all, you...will eat takeout when you go back, right?"

"That's true, but my girlfriend lives next door, and we usually eat together. So I'm sorry."

Su Qing didn't really care if his friends knew about this.

And the reason why he wanted to go back was very simple.

It’s really nice to eat hotpot together happily, and you don’t even have to wash the dishes yourself!

But what about Mahiru?

The girl had been lonely for too long and he didn't want to leave her alone anymore.

Even if he has never promised anything, there are many things that he must do without any promise.

"Ah... That's true. Then I won't keep you here."

Hachiman vaguely remembered this incident and thought that there was a reason why these two were together.

The role of the neighbor's good wife? The advantage is simply too great.

"Ok. I've finished asking. My family hasn't cooked yet, so I can stay here tonight."

After Yui finished speaking, her bright eyes dimmed slightly, and then she looked at Su Qing and asked, "So Xiaoqing is leaving now?"

"Yes. Sorry, I have to go now."

Su Qing stood up and was about to leave. Kamakula seemed to realize this and walked over quickly with his short legs, then circled around him.

[People, stay with me for a while longer...]

The cat rubbed its head against Su Qing's trouser leg, and then raised its warm eyes, as if trying to keep him.

It was hard to imagine that this was the kind of attachment one should have towards someone one met for the first time, and everyone once again felt each other's terrifying animal affinity.

"No, Kamakura, please listen to me."

Before Su Qing could react, Yui had already stepped forward and carried Kamakula away. The cat was still flapping its limbs in mid-air, looking very restless.

"Be obedient, I'll come play with you next time."

Su Qing walked up and stroked Kamakula's round head. The other party then stopped making a fuss and obediently let Yui hold him, just looking at him with a pair of innocent big eyes.

"Thanks."

Su Qing no longer paid attention to Kamakura, raised his eyes and stared at Yui, and said softly.

"Well...it's okay. I can't help you much." Yui just smiled and added, "Be careful on the road."

……

After Su Qing left, Komachi found an opportunity to pull Hachiman aside and asked in a low voice:

"So Brother Su Qing and Sister Yui are not a couple? I think they actually have a pretty good relationship."

"Ah, you think so too, right? But now it seems that both of them just regard each other as friends."

Hachiman said with deep sympathy that he never expected Komachi to have such a feeling the first time they met, she was worthy of being his sister!

"Hey... Brother, are you thinking about something weird again? I think it would be better for you to go buy groceries quickly."

"Wait...why am I going?"

"Because you're the only boy here!" Komachi chuckled twice, then asked sinisterly, "And... don't you want to show off your masculinity in front of Ayaka-san?"

"What does buying groceries have to do with masculinity..." Hachiman glanced at his sister, then walked out of the house with his hands in his pockets.

Komachi smiled triumphantly and shouted from behind, "Didn't you say it's okay?"

"I just love shopping..."

Hachiman responded casually without even turning his head.

"Ahh... there's really nothing I can do about him."

Komachi put her hands on her hips and sighed helplessly, then raised the corners of her mouth and walked back slowly. Her excited voice soon echoed in the quiet corridor.

"Finally I got that stupid old man out of here. Yay! Now it's our free time as four girls!"

……

On the other side, after Su Qing returned home, he was surprised to find that Mahiru was not in the kitchen. He even searched the entire house but couldn't find any trace of her.

This is a very strange thing. At this time in the past, the other party should have been preparing tonight's food.

Are you still at her house?

Su Qing had a spare key to Mahiru's house, but when he arrived at Mahiru's door, he did not choose to open the door and enter directly.

Girls are not as good as boys after all.

However, after Su Qing pressed the doorbell several times in a row, there was no response.

Not at home? Did he go shopping?

No, it's impossible.

Su Qing immediately denied his guess, because he clearly remembered that there were still vegetables from the last time he bought in the refrigerator.

Why did that happen? Did someone from her family come and take her away?

Su Qing's eyes suddenly became extremely cold, and his face was gloomy, as if water was about to drip out.

It's better... not what he imagined.

Su Qing didn't think any more, inserted the key and quickly entered the house.

There's no one in the living room... and no one in the kitchen... either.

He even tried calling out Mahiru's name, but still no one responded, like a needle dropped into the vast ocean.

Desperate and suffocating.

The atmosphere around seemed to freeze, and the coldness corroded every inch of the air, as if it was about to turn into frost.

Su Qing's eyes became increasingly cold, just like the ice in the far north that never melts all year round.

Now… only the bathroom and the room are left.

But does it still make sense?

Su Qing decided to check the room first. If he wasn't in the room, he could only pin his hopes on the phone.

But if you can't get in touch...

Su Qing took a deep breath. He always prepared for the worst.

He knocked gently on the door. At this moment he hoped to hear that familiar voice so much, but there was none.

It looks like it's going to snow tonight, so it will be much colder than in the past few days.

Su Qing's heart trembled, his body was cold, and the blood in his body seemed to have frozen. Everything seemed to go back to the day when he was abandoned as a child, curled up in the corner of the street, helpless.

……

No, it's even colder than that day.

Su Qing couldn't help but overthink.

He has always had a question.

That is, [super memory] theoretically can remember everything from birth to the present.

But all his memories can only be traced back to the day when he was abandoned by his biological parents.

I can't remember my parents' faces or names, and I don't even remember my own original name.

This is problematic, as if a section of memory has been erased and something is missing.

But now is not the time to think about that.

Su Qing gritted his teeth. The door was not locked, so he quickly entered the room.

It was still the familiar layout in his memory. He had been here before when Mahiru fell ill.

What was different was that the Pikachu doll he gave to the girl was neatly placed next to the bed and had been wiped very clean.

I think the owner cherishes its existence very much.

Then, his sight focused, and Mahiru's iconic hair appeared in Su Qing's world.

After a moment, Su Qing looked dazed, and the slight chill in his eyes melted away as if meeting the scorching sun.

Su Qing breathed a sigh of relief, and his heart beat for the first time in a long time.

[You are still here.]

[very nice……]

……

……