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The recollection ended, bringing everyone back to the present.

Yuki Nonaka exhaled softly after recounting the full truth of the tragic events that had occurred a decade ago.

"Afterwards, the Hero Village strictly sealed off all information and forbade us from speaking about it. Revealing anything would be considered an unforgivable betrayal. So, other than me and Kurumi, nobody else knows about this—not even Takashi. As for Bokue's little sister, Yura-chan, she was very young back then. I'm not even sure if she remembers anything clearly."

"Wait a minute," Maria tilted her head slightly, puzzlement evident in her tone.

"But based on your account, only Bokue-san was summoned to the shrine alone. You and Kurumi-san arrived after it was already over. So, how did you manage to figure out what exactly happened inside the shrine?"

"Well..." Yuki hesitated for a moment before continuing.

"We later discovered the remains of the three branch heads and the village elder in the ruins of the shrine. While all their corpses were badly damaged, there were distinct differences between them. Simply put, the three branch heads clearly died in battle, but the village elder's corpse was completely drained of life, showing signs of using a powerful sealing forbidden technique beforehand. Considering these clues, the events became fairly obvious."

Maria raised an eyebrow thoughtfully, probing deeper. "Didn't you ever suspect that Bokue-san might've been the one who drained the elder's life?"

"Not even once," Yuki shook her head firmly, absolute conviction shining in her eyes.

"You might not believe this, but from the very first moment I met Bokue, he always seemed like a heroic knight straight out of a fairy tale—brave, noble, honorable. In short, he's fundamentally a good person. There's no chance he'd ever resort to such sinister methods."

By the time she finished speaking, a faint blush had crept onto Yuki's usually composed face, making her seem like a lovestruck girl praising her crush.

Even Maria and Mio found themselves exchanging surprised yet admiring glances, slightly covering their mouths to hide their smiles.

After all, which girl wouldn't swoon over such extreme personal heroism? The kind of young man who, even amidst complete chaos and danger, would calmly reassure his loved ones, make sure they're safe, then single-handedly charge into battle uttering lines like.

"A Keikain Acting Head doesn't turn tail and run." Such charisma was practically irresistible.

"Anyway, whether you believe it or not, that's what truly happened."

Meanwhile, not far away in the battle-torn plaza, Bokue Keikain relaxed his clenched fist, casually dusting off his clothes. He glanced down at the battered, exhausted young Hero lying in a shallow crater at his feet.

Satisfied, Bokue turned to leave without another word.

"Wait—stop right there! I still... can't accept this...!"

Summoning the last remnants of his strength, Takashi Hayase clung desperately to the spear, White Tiger, using it as a crutch to push himself to his feet, calling out defiantly.

Before he could say anything more, a girl's calm voice echoed clearly through the plaza:

"Stop it already, Takashi. Everything Bokue said is true."

Wh-What...?

Takashi visibly wavered, staring incredulously as Yuki Nonaka stepped forward from behind a nearby flowerbed, her expression calm and resolute.

"Yuki Nonaka... You'd even lie to protect him—?"

"You already know deep down it's not a lie, don't you?"

Yuki interrupted softly but firmly, shaking her head.

"Think back carefully. Didn't you notice anything strange at all back then? When the elder passed away, the village never held any kind of funeral. Normally, such a significant death would warrant a grand memorial. But after that day, we never saw his body or attended any ceremony. Didn't you ever wonder why?"

"But... Wasn't the elder's corpse destroyed...?"

"No, parts remained," Yuki clarified gently yet firmly.

"Takashi, we've grown up seeing countless heroes in our village perish bravely. Even when only a finger or a personal belonging remained, we always held respectful funerals. But with the elder, there was nothing—not even a mention. The only possible explanation was that they couldn't show the body, because anyone from the village would've immediately realized he didn't die in battle. He used forbidden sealing magic at the cost of his own life. That would have completely contradicted the village's official claim that the Keikain Acting Head had gone berserk and killed everyone."

"Then—then why didn't you ever tell me this before?" Takashi's voice trembled, his conviction crumbling visibly. The uncomfortable doubts he'd suppressed for years now rushed to the surface.

"All these years..."

"Because you'd never listen calmly."

Surprisingly, it was Bokue who replied first, with a casual shrug.

"Just look at you—even ten years later, you can barely keep yourself together long enough to hear the full story. You'd just keep shouting 'I don't believe you, I refuse to believe it!' If we'd told you back then, you probably would've lost your mind completely and sliced yourself open in some dramatic act of remorse."

"..."

Takashi fell silent, eyes cast downward. Harsh though the words might be, he couldn't deny their truthfulness. Even just now, he'd reacted exactly as Bokue described. It was a hard pill to swallow, yet undeniably accurate.

"Alright, now that your curiosity's satisfied," Bokue concluded, sighing lightly. "You have no reason left to fight me, Takashi. Go home. As for Mio, I'll watch over her. You guys don't need to worry. And Yuki, Kurumi..."

Bokue turned his gaze toward the two Hero sisters nearby, hesitating briefly.

Yuki shook her head firmly, resolute determination shining in her eyes:

"We can't go back now, Bokue. We broke the rules by sharing what happened. That means we've officially betrayed the village."

"...Is that so."

Perhaps because of the overwhelming revelations he'd just received, Takashi didn't show much surprise at their declaration. He merely let out a tired sigh, turning toward his former childhood friend once again.

"And you...? What are you going to do now?"

"Hmm?"

Bokue raised an eyebrow, turning slightly with mild amusement. "Wait, are you seriously asking me if I'll return to the village? Need I remind you, my surname is Keikain, not Hayase or Nonaka. I never belonged to your village in the first place."

Takashi's grip on his spear tightened faintly. "...You know exactly what I'm asking."

"Oh~ that?" Bokue thought for a brief moment, then snapped his fingers lightly, a casual smile on his lips. "Since I dislike lying, I'll give you the blunt truth."

"The only reason I haven't settled the score with them yet is simply because I've been busy. But eventually, when I'm free, I'll choose a day with pleasant weather. I'll dress up in clothes I particularly like, enjoy a nice leisurely meal, and once I'm comfortably full, I'll take a little stroll..."

He smiled pleasantly, yet his words dripped with chilling murderous intent:

"...and then I'll go visit those shameless bastards who crossed me—and kill every single one of them."

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