I Became the Final Subjugation Target of That Era’s Light Novel

When I think about it, life isn’t all that bad after all.

Of course, this may not apply to everyone. The world has an overwhelming variety of environments, and I simply happened to be born in a situation where I could maintain a life like this.

Even in this somewhat bizarre fantasy world, there are plenty of parts around me that make me feel like the world isn’t so bad.

Take Kagami’s existence, for example.

Kagami could have been someone else.

She gave birth to me at such a young age and had to take responsibility for me. If Kagami had felt even a little more despair towards the world, or if she had found me to be a bother—no, if she had never even thought about protecting me from the beginning, my life might have been so broken that I wouldn’t even be able to call it a life.

The possibility that I wouldn’t have survived is also high.

The existence of that one person has changed my life so much.

I have many people who have helped me. There are also people who have helped Kagami. But for me, the biggest cause of this life started simply from Kagami.

“Mom.”

“Yes?”

I called out to Kagami, who was sitting at the table preparing something in the kitchen with a bit of clatter, and she turned to look at me.

Despite having endured so much for such a long time, youth still lingered on Kagami’s face. It wasn’t just a blessing from genetics; it was also evidence that she had suffered from such a young age.

“Koto Ne?”

Seeing her tilt her head while looking at me made me involuntarily smile a little.

“It’s nothing.”

Kagami tilted her head the other way and placed a platter filled with cut fruit on the table.

“What time was our appointment again?”

“A bit more time left.”

“Are Sasaki siblings coming too?”

“No, just Shii.”

Shii is quite meticulous about this kind of thing.

She knows her brother is good-looking.

I think there might have been a description in the novel about “an ordinary male high school student,” but honestly, his appearance is far from ordinary. Sota was just a little awkward in front of girls, but if he were just a bit more sociable, he would have been very popular in elementary school.

So, I suppose the reason I didn’t convey anything to Sota this time is under the guise of “preventive measures.”

…But despite that, I think I’m doing alright. Do they think I’m somewhat unattractive?

“Lately, it feels like Shii-chan is getting a bit wary every time I go…?”

“……”

As soon as Shii’s name was mentioned, Kagami placed one hand on her cheek and took on a serious thinking expression.

It makes sense for Kagami to be like that; just as I’m concerned about Sota and Shii, she has also consistently been mindful of them. When she makes too many side dishes, she directly visits to deliver them, and those two often come to play at our house.

For a while, Shii treated Kagami the same way she treated me.

But lately, perhaps because Dad’s guard has loosened a bit, Sota has strangely been shy whenever Kagami is around.

…But still, isn’t Kagami publicly seen as a married woman?

Could it be that during the time she lived in our house, Sota figured out that Kagami and Dad aren’t actually a real couple? If it’s someone with as much intuition as Shii, that could be a possibility.

“Mom is just too beautiful.”

“Eeek!?”

When I suddenly dropped that bomb, Kagami covered her face with both hands in surprise.

“Hey, what are you talking about?”

But it seemed like Kagami quickly realized that I was joking, waving one hand while the other still remained on her cheek, and her face was a bit red.

Well, at this age, it’s pretty natural for Kagami to be treated like a married woman, but she definitely has an appearance that people would find attractive.

…I mentioned earlier that she suffered from a young age, but thinking again, it seems it isn’t just “because she’s actually young.” I guess it’s something inherited from the family.

While I was lost in unrelated thoughts, Kagami picked up a slice of peach with a fork.

“Hey, Koto Ne.”

“Yeah?”

“Are you going through puberty?”

I nearly spat out the peach I was chewing.

“No…”

Finally swallowing the peach and opening my mouth, I paused for a moment.

Wait, am I going through puberty too? By the time, this is exactly when it should be happening.

Why does puberty happen? Human psychological states are influenced by various chemicals secreted in the brain. It’s around that time when one starts to awaken to the opposite sex and gets excited about everything.

You get irritated about everything, your tone becomes harsh. Thanks to that, it’s a phase that creates most of life’s embarrassing moments—

So they say, but honestly, I don’t think I’ve become that sharp of a person.

No, more than that.

Kagami was just around my age when she first gave birth to me.

When Kagami looted me in her arms and ran, she must have been close to my age.

She gave up going to school, gave up living under her parents, gave up making friends, and simply escaped with a newborn me.

Kagami might have gone through puberty too—there’s a chance. Even though she said she loved me and held me in her arms, maybe there were many times she wanted to give up behind my back.

What was it like for her to raise a child while others were going to school under their parents?

Or maybe she didn’t even have the time to feel those emotions, being crushed by all that hardship?

“……”

“Koto Ne?”

What was Mom like?

I wanted to ask that.

What was she feeling back then? What thoughts crossed her mind while raising me? How much did she suffer? But Kagami wouldn’t answer. Until I was in upper elementary school, she never told me how hard she was working.

I only got to see her sweating profusely as she brought out soup on a hot stove, or stirring food in a frying pan, much later.

I’m sure Kagami kept doing those things at my age now.

The greatest pain was likely the agony she felt when I was born. At that young age, she gave birth to me while enduring unimaginable pain.

…Sometimes I wished Kagami wasn’t my mom, just a little. I wished I had an older sister instead. Then she wouldn’t have had to experience that kind of pain.

But I don’t have the right to rationalize that. My existence symbolizes the greatest turning point in Kagami’s life.

I will probably continue to occupy that place for a long time to come.

“Koto Ne.”

“Yeah?”

Kagami’s voice brought me back to reality. I must have been lost in thought, holding a fork that I hadn’t even touched.

Kagami looked at me thoughtfully for a moment, then got up from her seat.

She walked around the table and sat down next to me.

Gently reaching out, she pulled me into her arms.

These days, I still sleep with Kagami. I liked that. While Kagami couldn’t always be by my side, when she could be there, I wanted to feel that fact more clearly.

Even though I hug her every day, the sensation of her embracing me never felt unpleasant.

“There’s no need to share every thought. Everyone has secrets they don’t want to tell others.”

“……”

“But I’ll always be here for you. If there’s ever something you’re overly worried about alone, feel free to come talk to me anytime.”

I couldn’t even respond to those words.

I wondered if asking might just burden Kagami.

After that, Kagami didn’t say anything.

She just held me tightly in her arms, gently stroking my hair.

No matter how much I’m not an ordinary human. Even if I might seem like something not very different from those monsters. To Kagami, I was simply her daughter.

A unique and precious existence in the world. One that she must protect at all costs.

My fingertips trembled slightly.

I put down my fork and hugged Kagami back.

Now… now, I must protect her. Sota, Shii, Yuka, all important characters in the story. To progress the story, they absolutely must not die. If this world is truly similar to a log story, those kids would likely survive even without me interfering.

But Kagami is different.

She is a being whose name doesn’t even appear in the novel. She might have come out at some point later, but unless I know, I wouldn’t know what role she played. There’s a chance she could die as an extra without ever even having her name mentioned.

That cannot happen. It would be too cruel for a life that has suffered so much to meet such an unfortunate end.

So I don’t care what happens to me.

I just want to protect Kagami. By any means, even if I have to risk my life—

Swallowing those words, I simply stayed in Kagami’s embrace.

…Even while thinking such things, I found myself feeling quite pathetic for seeking only comfort from others in this moment.

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