[A Distant Dream]
He was watching a dream. He, Tsurugi was having a dream of when he was a child.
“What is it, Tsurugi? Did you get bullied again?”
The one who ran up to him crying in the park was a boy.
Tsurugi raised his face. The body of the boy standing before him was muddy with dirt.
His knees were scraped and his face was dirty with soil here and there. However, his eyes, which were wide open powerfully, were shining sparklingly in the sunset.
Tsurugi turned around and looked up at the face while crouching. Tears dried on his cheeks.
“Kazato-kun…”
“What’s with the kun? Sounds gross.”
He, the boy called Kazato ran to the swing and jumped on it.
“I’ve always said it, right! Call me Kazato! Tsurugi!”
The boy started swinging the swing, and the swing quickly climbed to a high place.
Tsurugi stood up and stared at him. Then, Kazato jumped from the swing, over the fence in front of him, and landed before Tsurugi.
“If they did bad things to you, you just have to pay them back though. Like me.”
“But I don’t have an ability…”
“I also don’t have an ability. Such a thing doesn’t matter.”
“But Kazato is strong at fighting… I’m not strong… And I’m slow.”
“Then Tsurugi just have to be as strong as I am.”
“I can’t become like you.”
“You can.”
Tsurugi fell into silence unintentionally to Kazato who made that statement without hesitation. He kept his eyes on Tsurugi’s eyes.
“…Even though Kazato don’t have an ability, how can you stand up to everyone?”
“I dream of joining the SDF, so I have to be strong. I’ll join the SDF and become a hero who protects everyone.”
“Kazato’s dream is to join the Self-Defense Force…?”
“Yup. I want to be like your dad.”
“But people who don’t have ability can’t enter the Self-Defense Force, you know? My dad said so.”
“It’s okay. Teacher also said that we don’t have an ability yet just because we’re still kids, right? You and I will soon be able to use ability too.”
“Really?”
“Yup, absolutely. Rather than that, tell me more about your dad! Your dad is seriously awesome, right!”
Tsurugi’s face became brighter. Unlike the others, only the boy didn’t compare the ability-less him to his father.
Unlike other boys of the same age who got their ability manifested one after another, only the boy did not make fun of Tsurugi. The cowardly and crybaby Tsurugi who despite being the son of that Midou Ryuusui, had not got his ability manifested.
Therefore, Tsurugi was able to brag about his father without hesitation only to the boy.
“Alright. You see—”
———
“…A dream?”
After opening his eyes with a snap, a round electric lamp was reflected in Tsurugi’s view.
He raised his body, and then noticed the existence of Aika sitting on a chair.
“Good morning.”
“…Morning.”
The hands of the clock were pointing at 9 am.
Tsurugi felt the dullness in his body. He apparently slept too much.
“You sure are early.”
“Because my wake-up time is fixed.”
“I see. What about breakfast?”
“I have eaten first. Shall I prepare Tsurugi-san’s portion?”
“No, I’m good. I don’t have much appetite.”
“I understand.”
“What time should you go to the facility?”
“It is 10 o’clock.”
“Then, one hour later?”
“Yes.”
For a moment, Tsurugi was worried if they would make it in time, but there was no need to hurry. The place where Tsurugi and co were in now was close to the Saint Celia base, and the facility was just a few minutes’ walk away.
Though it was said that they had moved, they were like living in a real base.
“Come to think of it, Tsurugi-san, you sounded like you were having a nightmare, did you have a nightmare today?” Aika asked so, making Tsurugi frowned.
“I sounded like I was having a nightmare?”
“Yes.”
“…………”
Tsurugi recalled the dream. The content shouldn’t be a nightmare. What he saw was a dream of his childhood. A dream about the Kazato who he longed for in his childhood.
Thinking about it, perhaps it is kind of a nightmare. Tsurugi mused inwardly.
Tsurugi gazed at the empty space and reminded of the past.
[Dammit, dammit…]
[Hey-! Don’t you guys gang up on one person and bully him!]
[It’s Kazato again!]
[This show off!]
[Shadduuup!]
He hated the weak being bullied.
He said his dream was to help the weak.
For the weak Tsurugi, Kazato was a hero.
[Kazato-kun, looks like you made everyone cry again.]
[You got it wroong-! They were bullying Rin and Tsurugi, so I!]
[But Kazato-kun, you shouldn’t hit other people you know.]
[It’s natural to hit back when you were hit, right! Why are you only scolding me, Teacher!]
He never cried even when he was scolded by the teacher.
Tsurugi was staring at the angry Kazato from behind.
[Rin, I want to keep secret about my ability manifestation from Kazato.]
[Why…?]
[Because Kazato still doesn’t have an ability… If he found out that mine manifested…]
[…Right. Got it.]
Tsurugi recalled the time he came to kept a secret from Kazato. While he felt guilty to Kazato, he couldn’t deny that he had a slight sense of superiority.
[Kazato, let’s go to play!]
[No, I’ll pass today. I’m tired. You, Ohashi, and Rin should go together.]
[…Kazato has become kinda gloom, isn’t he, Tsurugi?]
[Un…]
[I wonder if it’s because his ability didn’t manifest…]
[…………]
Even in junior high school, Kazato’s ability didn’t manifest. At his age, the manifestation of one’s ability was hopeless. It was around this time that Kazato stopped talking about his longing for the SDF.
[It was lie.]
[Eh? What?]
[It was a lie…]
[…]
[I said I wanted to help people, that was a lie. Actually.]
[Un.]
[I want to take revenge. I can’t forgive them. Anonymous who killed my father, those evils…!]
[…]
[I want to help people. Certainly, I have that feeling. That’s not a lie, but, more than that, I want to get revenge. I want to quit school is also because I want revenge.
I didn’t think I would feel like this just because my parent was killed. I can’t help but hate those guys who killed my dad.
I won’t be satisfied until I killed them…!]
[Tsurugi…]
[…Sorry, Kazato.]
At that time, how was Kazato’s feelings listening to his talk?
[…Kazato?]
[Ahh]
[…Did you… kill Rin?]
[Ahh, I did.]
“Tsurugi-san.”
Being called by Aika, Tsurugi came back to himself.
“Are you not feeling well? Your complexion is not good.”
“Ahh… no, that’s not the case. I was thinking about something.”
“Is that so?”
“…I’ll go take a shower.”
“I understand.”
———
Tsurugi and Aika were walking on the road to the facility.
The stronghold city of Saint Celia was a city that stretch out as if surrounding the SDF base, with outer walls surrounding it in addition to it. Since the base spreads around the top of a gentle hill, one could see corner of the city from its end.
The distance of the place where Tsurugi and Aika currently lives from the development facility located at the end of the base, which was a vast area, is about 300m.
If one walked normally, it would take about 3 minutes; Tsurugi was slowly walking ahead of Aika; they took their time heading to the facility.
And when they arrived at the facility, a fat man in a white coat welcomed Tsurugi and Aika.
“Good day. I’m the newly appointed escort of Yumesaki Aika, Midou Tsurugi. I brought Yumesaki Aika.”
Tsurugi took a step forward, and said his greetings.
“Good day, Lieutenant General Midou. Good work. You can call me Kamei.”
“Kamei-san, is it? Pleased to be your acquaintance.”
“No, no, the pleasure is mine. Well then, I’ll look after Aika-chan.”
“I understand.” Hearing the two’s conversation, Aika went to Kamei’s side.
“Well, Aika-chan, let’s do our best in your examination today, shall we?” Kamei put his hand on Aika’s shoulder and said.
“Yes.”
“Well then, Lieutenant General Midou. The inspection will be over in about two hours, so please come back here again later.”
“I understand.”
Kamei’s breath was stinky, so Tsurugi seemed to frown for a moment, but he managed to reply somehow.
Kamei bowed and walked with Aika toward the door at the end.
After seeing them off, Tsurugi left the facility.
A glimpse of their childhood. I felt like Kazato is kinda like Deku from Boku no Hero Academia, but with no one saving him from despair. Add the disaster created by the manifestation of his ability, perhaps he thought that there’s no more hope for him to live normally. But if he knew that Tsurugi had ability and pretty high position in SDF, he might have count on him at the start. It was a bad move of Tsurugi hiding the truth from him – or so I thought.
And is it just me getting bad vibes from that Kamei guy?
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Zky Translates 
thanks
kamei reeks of evil scientist, and i was wondering about that since mc knew his bfs father was with the sdf why he didnt consult him
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Thanks for the chapter. Your theory is sound but I can’t agree with it. Kazato is a survivilist he will always prioritize himself over others.
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Yeah he is so now, but in his childhood he wanted to be a hero, you know kinda like the current Tsurugi, that’s why Tsurugi admired him in his childhood as well.
Well, he changed. People changed.
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Yes they do. But I got thinking he realized now in his last training that he craves for strength obviously to not get killed (essencially to survive), what if when he was a child that was his real goal, not so strongly to be a hero but to be ‘strong’ as one, as child one tends to think of ‘heroes’ as the ‘strongest’ unbeatable existence. Maybe thats what he was chasing after. That such a wish got disorted it migth have happened.
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That’s quite possible too, as Kazato himself said that he had forgotten that he wanted to join SDF and protect people.
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Eh what I got from this is. Mc bestfriends are assholes. They knew why he was gloomy and could have helped but instead they ignored him and went for the bestfriend with power instead of helping another who was gloomy. Like are they even friends…. like the mc said in the beginning all they are all childhood friends not friends.
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