The first noise was a hum. It was accompanied by a haze that prevented him from thinking properly.

The melodious sound of someone humming was the first thing that always came to mind. It was hard to make out, but it was obviously a woman.

Sometimes the hum would come from a little girl, sometimes from someone who sounded like they were thinking about a lot, sometimes from someone who sounded like they were thinking too little, and sometimes it sounded like it came from him. Regardless of who it came from, it would always start with this hum.

The humming itself was always soft and there was never any real rhythm to it. It was never a known song that could be replicated unless it was heard by others. Even then, others would just call it a basic noise.

To him, it was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. Maybe that was why it was always the first thing that came to mind at these times. The sound was the only thing that could ever bring him peace.

It was because of that peace that he would always follow it up with a movement. The same movement he would always use when he was within the Forbidden Zone.

A slash.

The noise, the scene, and even the person humming that unknown song was always broken apart by a slash of his hand. A want to forget about that beautiful and peaceful noise. A reminder of what he had given up already and what he refused to ever take back.

A single slash was all it ever took for it to disappear in an instant. Something fleeting like that was not for someone like him.

And yet, he realized at some point, it was because it was so fleeting that he always let it return to start this whole thing over again. Bringing it back was not a want for it but pity for how easily it could be crushed by a single hand. Anything more would be breaking it for more than himself.

That did bring a thought to mind this time.

When did I get this tired?

This would normally be something he accepted without complaint. A sign that he put in more work than he would have liked, but less than he expects from himself. It meant that he had not done enough and instead did all that his body would allow him to do.

Did I accomplish anything this time?

What exactly was there to accomplish?

From what he understood, there were no real fights to deal with. Nothing urgent was put in front of him. Everything had been settled because he had been able to use his words. Even the more irritating parts of it were settled far too quickly for his liking.

If things were that easy to solve then he would not have to do anything in the first place. Being needed never suited him, so he had always thought that butting in on important matters was what he had to do. If things could be settled with or without his meddling then it meant he had never been needed to begin with.

So why was I involved this time exactly?

Things could have been resolved without him there. It had all involved honest people who were reliable in a lot of ways. Having him there had pushed things along, but that was all it had done. Nothing he did actually changed the outcome of it all. All he did was get to that outcome faster.

The more he thought about it the more he could feel his mind start to wake up properly. The haze that always came during these times was clearing up and he was organizing all of his scattered thoughts. Any pointless noise was removed and thoughts of everyone's futures started to fill his thoughts.

Honestly…what am I even doing?

It was not a bitter thought, but it carried the weight of his knowledge with it. Knowledge of everything he had done and everything that could have been done. There were two others in a similar situation as him, but he had decided to do so many things himself instead of dumping it on them.

Urg. I don't like forcing things like that idiot, but I also don't take any chances I can get like that boy. The two of them need to learn some patience if they're going to devote themselves to those around them. Then again, they have the freedom to do those kinds of things. With someone looking out for them, they don't have to worry about how fast they escalate things. There's always going to be someone there for them.

That was where things were different for him. There would be no one there for him to make sure he kept an even pace or to make sure he would keep things to himself. All of that was done by himself and for himself.

Others had spoken about his laziness, but they had also spoken about how prepared he always seemed to be. It had sometimes caused others to be wary of him, but he never cared. It just meant there were less people he would have to interact with.

It was also because of these things that he knew he would be fine doing things for himself. With no one to keep track of him or make sure he never went overboard, it left him to manage all of that himself. Being able to do that for as long as he had meant he could keep himself in line whenever he wanted to.

I admit that times like these are a mess up on my part. Letting my body get this tired ends up bringing some attention to me. I guess this just means I need to be more careful about these sorts of things. That way I can keep things where they should be.

A place where he could leave whenever he wanted and know that no one would mind. His disappearance would be a passing thought at best and a minor thought at worst. That was what he would strive for while maintaining the happiness of others.

It was something an unneeded person should be capable of.


Minoru narrowed his eyes at what was displayed on his phone. He had been going about his day as usual when a message had come in.

Miso Soup: "I have some news for you three~"

Gambler: "And we don't care. Now go jump off a bridge and make sure you don't crawl back up."

It was strange to see that coming from Denji, but Minoru felt like it was appropriate given who he was answering to. Even Minoru himself felt disgusted whenever he saw Misó. He was just that kind of person.

And yet, even with them feeling that way about him, he continued to message them. As if everything they felt for him was nothing for him.

Miso Soup: "C'mon. I thought you guys would want to know this. Especially since it involves that lazy bum you all know so well."

If it had been anyone else then Minoru was sure that he would have paused. There was a lot that chose not to know when it came to some of his former teammates, but that never meant he did not care for them.

Hearing that something had happened to some of them brought all kinds of thoughts to mind. Depending on who it was, Minoru was certain he would be able to figure out what was happening. Even so, he refused to listen to someone like Misó.

There was no doubt that he was not alone in this. Likely, Denji was already making a move to prevent him from saying any more. That only left the last members with them.

Myth: "Before you put anything else. Why is it that we should listen to you?"

Miso Soup: "Because of how great I am at collecting data."

Myth: "A follow up, then. What is it that we should believe you?"

Miso Soup: "Because my sources are always right."

Myth: "And therein lies the problem with this."

None of them knew what sources Misó was using. The same could be said for Sekai and Denji, but Minoru was certain that they were more trustworthy than anything Misó could bring up. It was the difference between two dangerous people doing something and a person doing something dangerous.

While it was worrying how all of them got their courses for their information, it was always clear that Misó was the most untrustworthy when it came to it all. More than that, they were all aware that there was a cost for any information coming from him.

Fully knowing that, Minoru decided to leave it up to the other two to deal with this.

Miso Soup: "Look, I'm just here to let you guys know that Sekai passed out. Not like usual boring stuff either. It was the kind of passing out that only happened that one other time."

Myth: "The fact you are aware of that makes you sound even more suspicious. As if you are the reason for it happening."

Miso Soup: "I really wish I was the reason for it, trust me. I would like nothing more than to bash that guy's he-"

The message was suddenly cut off and replaced with a series of "Deleted" on Minoru's screen. He released a breath he had not known he was holding.

Gambler: "When did that guy learn to secure his account? That was too damn annoying to deal with."

Myth: "At least you managed to deal with him."

Gambler: "Nah. I had Suzakasu deal with him. I was busy doing something else."

Myth: "And what would that be exactly?"

Minoru was also curious. He had an idea as to what Denji could have been doing, but even he found that it only went as far as five different things. Each one of them was different from each other, so he could not say for sure.

The problem with asking Denji always came down to not knowing if his answer was going to be a serious one or not. If it was Minoru asking then the answer would be obvious, but since it was Ketsueki who was asking then it could go either way.

Gambler: "Wouldn't you like to know."

Myth: "I would. And if you don't want me to go to Suzaku-kun myself, you will tell me."

Gambler: "Where's the fun in that? You didn't even go with the obvious heavy hitters for that threat. Now I'm just bored with this conversation."

Myth: "Good. Then you have a reason to stop stalling and tell us already."

Gambler: "Fine, fine. I was just looking into what the roach was talking about. Checking with some people to see what's going on with that idiot of a former teammate we have."

If they were to compare their entire former squad then Sekai would have actually been at the top when it came to intellect. Minoru wanted to point this out, but he knew that it would most likely make Denji stop where he was.

Ketsueki was probably in a similar situation, only staying silent to hear anything else. The direct message he had sent a moment later proved that to be true.

Sadly, but as expected, neither one of them needed to say anything else as Denji decided that was all he would be telling them.

Gambler: "Looks like things have been done and I'm curious as to what's going to happen next. So I'm gonna go and have some more fun. You two… Well, I don't really care what you do."

With that he had left. Instead of telling them about anything concerning the situation he had left them wanting an answer. It was something they had both expected from the likes of him, but also something they knew they could not change.

All they could do at this point was try to figure things out themselves. But there was something about all of this that Minoru found worrying.

"If it really is like last time then this can end up being a mess."

"That is true," said Ketsueki, still on the other line. "The last time something like this happened was when Sekai had completely shut down. At least his body had. Yasuko-san had been very worried about him, so I hope this time it is not as bad."

"There's a difference this time, though. You know that, right?"

"I do," he said.

Last time had been when they were on the same squad. During that time it was hard to really speak with each other or bother to properly worry about each other. This had left them with no choice but to rely on their Operator to take care of things while they could only ask about things.

Now that they were older, and their squad no longer existed, they could not do something like that again. Standing to the side and only watching as everything went on was no longer something they had or wanted to do.

If something from the past repeated itself then it was on them to check on it and decide for themselves if something needed to be done. Doing so may cause issues later on, but it was what they had to deal with as people who knew what things had been like before.

Knowing that was what had to be done, Minoru resolved himself and began typing on his phone once more.


The first things that Sekai awoke to were the artificial lights above him. They were blinding the more he tried to open his eyes, so he closed his eyes and turned to the side.

That had been the wrong choice as his body got tangled up in the blanket wrapped around him. He did not bother to steady himself and instead hit the ground. The dull pain from the impact helped to wake him up even more, allowing him to hear the small noise of someone gasping.

Feeling his body still weighed more than usual, he decided to stay on the floor. He only bothered to look up when he heard the sound of someone stopping above him. They moved their body to look down at him, covering him from the artificial lights.

The calm and serene expression Kuruma wore while looking at him calmed him down a bit. It was always like this whenever he decided to stay in the near vacant Suzunari-1 operating room.

"You must be really tired to stay on the floor like that."

"It's too irritating to try and move right now."

"Then do you want me to help you back up?"

Instead of verbally answering, Sekai motioned for Kuruma to move closer. No sigh was let out, but he felt like maybe it was a good time for it.

Doing as instructed, Kuruma got to his knees and leaned forward. He had fully expected Sekai to say something or make some kind of annoyed motion.

Instead of any of that, he moved his arms forward, pushed on Kuruma's chest, and pushed him down. With three more motions he managed to get Kuruma to sit down, cross his legs, and place his head on his lap.

With a sound reminiscent of a domesticated animal, Sekai began to get comfortable on Kuruma's lap. He turned so that his face was towards Kuruma's stomach and the blanket was halfway up his face.

"Much better…"

"You know, most people ask before they use someone else as a pillow."

"Hah. I was originally going to use you as a body pillow, but that felt like it would be irritating for the both of us."

"I see. Either way…I have no complaints about either option."

That was due more to it having happened already. There had been countless times wherein Sekai had decided that Kuruma would be his personal heater, pillow, or comfort body. It was always strange to hear that, but neither one of them had any real complaints.

So, having been used to this by now, Kuruma began stroking Sekai's head and looking at nothing in particular. This was just how they ended up at times like these.

The silence that followed was something they let take over the atmosphere. It let them think about whatever they wanted and not bother speaking, knowing that nothing they said would fully convey anything they felt.

At least, that was how it normally was.

"You can relax, you know?"

"Huh?"

Sekai slowly opened his eyes when he heard Kuruma's voice. It sounded like he was speaking to someone else in the room, but there were only the two of them.

Thinking that he was just talking to himself or that he had let those words slip out, he looked up to see that Kuruma was looking down at him. His expression was unlike any he had shown before.

"Kagerei has told me about you passing out before. This would be the second time now, wouldn't it?"

"Hah… So what if it is?"

Sekai felt his body shudder for a moment. An uncontrollable movement that he thought could never happen again. As someone who had to be prepared at all times, having his body make such an action made him more than irritated.

There was nothing else he could say when his own body seemed to be reacting to the things that were said.

"Most people would be nervous with a reaction like that," said Kuruma with a chuckle. "You can relax now. Do yourself that service."

"I'm fine, Tatsuya…"

"I know that you have been through a lot. I heard stories from others."

It could have been Denji or Ketsueki. Either one of them would have said something just to get on his nerves. That was just how they were with him.

More likely than that, he had been told by many people about a lot of things concerning Sekai. Even so, there were a lot of things that Sekai knew he never would know. That was just how he had always lived his life.

"I know that you're tired from all of the work you do for others. But tell me, is that how you want to live? I have seen the way you take care of yourself."

This moment was a good example of that. Expending himself until he was finally forced to stop because his body had nothing else to give.

Sekai tried with everything in him to not react, but his body was still moving on autopilot from having just crashed. So when he felt himself begin to curl in a bit he could only curse himself in his mind.

"Why do you need to give so much without taking anything in return? You could always show your trust to someone when you stop and lower your guard."

Was that not what he was doing here?

When he thought about it, Sekai could still feel his body trying to make sure he was ready for anything. There was no one else in the room but his body was still getting ready to try and move in case something happened.

If that was what was happening then did that mean he did not trust Kuruma? They had gone through a lot with just their first meeting, but that seemed to have not gotten through to his instincts yet.

"There's always a chance to make that kind of adjustment. It isn't that hard for most, but… I guess you still have your demons. I will just say to try when you can."

"That's easy for someone like you to say. Hah. Hah…"

It was rude of him to say something like that when Kuruma had gone out of his way to help him, both this time and during their first meeting. It irritated him that he had spoken like that, but that was the only way he could get his words across here.

Kuruma did not seem to take it personally since he only hummed and moved his head back. He had closed his eyes, but Sekai was sure that it was not something against him. If anything, it was his way of thinking through those words.

"Even with Neighbors always coming through, this life is amazing. I know that ones like you and Bakuto view things as a more statistical thing, and so does Tachikawa when it comes to fights, but putting your heart into things also isn't bad."

"Doing something like that leads to mess ups during the worst times… We saw that happen already. If I tried that then I have no doubt that I would fail miserably."

"You say that, but I feel like the world lightens up more if you try and open up a bit to it."

Doing that went directly against his belief. A belief held by two other people who were giving their all for everyone around them. While at the same time, they were making sure to keep themselves closed off from all but two people.

Sekai had no one like that, so opening up now would mean the end of everything he had built up in order to give his all for everyone. The life he had lived would have been destroyed the moment he did that and he was certain that he would regret every moment of it afterwards.

"Well, it isn't like I can force you to do anything."

"Hah. Glad you know that."

"So instead, I will message Suwa-san and Jinsei."

Sekai felt as if he was fully awake. Using everything in him, he sprang up, turned around, and touched his head to the floor. His arms were evenly spread out and his legs were folded under him.

Seeing this, Kuruma covered his mouth to try and cover his laugh. His attempt was a failure and he had started to laugh with no end. The sound echoed in the room, but Sekai never once looked up.

It was only after another minute of this did Kuruma finally start to settle down. He sat in front of Sekai and lightly patted his shoulder.

Lifting his head, Sekai looked up to see Kuruma smiling down at him.

"I won't tell them anything. …Yet. But try to keep in mind what I said. Can you at least do that?"

"It'll be irritating, but I can try. Hah."

That was the best Kuruma would be able to get out of him, so he shrugged while Sekai started to sit up. The two let the silence sink in once more, but this time it was lighter.

Sekai gave a sigh into the silence before slowly moving to stand up.

Kuruma watched as he did so, but said nothing. He only moved when Sekai held out a hand, motioning for him to grab it. Like before, he did as he was instructed and was pulled up.

A small noise rang out in the room once he was fully up. They both looked down to see that it was Sekai's phone. Along with it came a noise from Kuruma's pocket.

Grabbing their respective phones, they both opened them to see what had been sent. Once having read through it all, Sekai gave a long sigh while Kuruma chuckled to himself.

"I can't believe these guys…"

"Maybe this is how they worry about you?"

"Hah. Denji's stupidity aside, I expected something like this from that idiot. I just didn't think Denji would have the balls to actually tell him."

"Oh? Does he not like Jinsei?"

"It isn't that. Hah. More like…he can't get a good read on him."

"In any case, don't you think you should do something before Jinsei causes a commotion? …More of a commotion?"

Instead of a sigh, Sekai gave a tired groan as he looked back down at what had been sent to him.

There, on the screen of his phone, was a picture of Jinsei waving his arms around with the following message coming from Denji.

Gambler: "Your idiot knows you passed out today~"