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

……Um.

Since coming to this world, what I’m a bit weirdly feeling is that I’m hurt because the people around me don’t seem to like me.

Well, that’s not to say that the people around me hate me. It’s just that the mere feeling of it makes me feel a bit hurt.

It’s understandable, considering I cut off almost all connections with people in my previous life.

It’s not like I did anything good. If I were to put it bluntly, I was just a person who faced trials and couldn’t overcome them.

But still, even so, as I got tougher through social experiences, I hardly get hurt by the strange glares from others. If I were to have a soft heart, the reality of social life isn’t exactly kind.

So, being on the receiving end of a teenage girl’s glare felt a bit…

“…Are you okay?”

Yu was watching me intently while saying that.

“Yeah, I’m fine….”

“…You got hit by a car, right? It can’t be okay! They said you might need to be hospitalized!”

Seeing Yu sitting there with his legs crossed and arms folded while looking at me made me a bit confused.

Does he want to get angry, or is he worried?

In truth, I kind of remembered this scene.

That was how my younger sister used to worry about me.

Usually, we would fight like we wanted to kill each other, and when we were younger, we even swore at each other with words we can’t even repeat… but still, we never cut off our family ties.

As we grew older, our respective boundaries gradually set, and there’s no reason to invade those spaces, my younger sister’s attitude has improved a lot since then.

But still, honestly, we couldn’t be completely honest with each other, and my last memory of her was one of us bickering while complaining.

Maybe that’s why I can’t forget.

Anyway.

Given my job, there are times when I have to go to places that seem quite dangerous. There could be a major accident in my work area, or a huge wildfire might occur even if it’s a bit far.

Every time, my sister would send me a text asking, “Are you alive?”

“…”

But, was the atmosphere really this tense?

“Uh, uh.”

Before I could open my joining, another friend butted in.

With a boldness that was admirable, someone from behind reached out and squeezed Yu’s cheeks on both sides into a goldfish-like expression, and it was, of course, Harumi.

Among us, she might be the biggest.

“If you glare like that, Koto Ne will get scared. Yu-chan, you need to fix that habit of scowling first whenever something happens.”

“Habit?”

As I mumbled and looked up at Harumi, she nodded while standing behind Yu, who had pulled a chair next to the bed.

“Yeah. Yu tends to squeeze all his negative feelings into one expression.”

“…I don’t do that.”

Yu said with a bit of a whine as he pushed Harumi’s hand away.

I don’t think he had that habit when we were younger.

Well, to be precise, in my memories of young Yu, there were two distinct phases. The phase where he didn’t really know anything, when he mistook Kagami for his mom. At that time, Yu appeared incredibly innocent, as though he knew nothing.

At some point, he started to slowly realize the reality, and the last memory I had of him was a slightly dimmer version than those days.

He wasn’t the kind of person to just bottle up all his negative feelings with a single expression anymore.

…Could it be a kind of defense mechanism?

“…”

Since Kagami had stayed in the hospital room the day after I didn’t go to school, she naturally was here.

Though I had become much less awkward after seeing Yu several times, it seemed Kagami still felt a bit awkward around him.

The Yu Kagami remembered must have been quite similar to the Yu I remembered… but still, Kagami viewed Yu as an adult.

Even knowing that Yu mistook ‘that’ for his real mom, Kagami seemed to feel more sympathy than disgust towards him.

Or perhaps empathy. It was the same for Kagami; she had endured a much greater degree of hardship owing to the emotional connection with family.

So, when Yu acted spoiled in front of Kagami, she generally indulged him. After Yu had realized that Kagami wasn’t actually his mom, he had been somewhat perceptive, so their relationship was fairly good.

Then, out of nowhere, Kagami just disappeared without any word.

I couldn’t imagine how shocking that must have been for little Yu. And, it would undoubtedly remain a source of guilt for Kagami. Even if it’s a story that’s hard to blame oneself for.

“So, how about you, Koto Ne-chan? You didn’t get seriously injured, right?”

“Just bumped my head a little. Just in case, I stayed an extra day, but the doctor said I’m okay.”

Yu’s gaze sharpened even further.

…If that is a worried gaze.

Could it be that Yu’s face while being dragged by Harumi wasn’t just looking at me but was actually ‘a pitiful expression’?

“…Um, by the way.”

Suddenly curious, I asked.

“So, how did the meeting go yesterday?”

“Uh? Suddenly asking that?”

Harumi blinked her eyes as if confused, while Yu shot a glare at me. Ah, looking at it this way, there’s still some change in expressions. No, to put it bluntly, I’d call it a lack of discomfort. Though I couldn’t quite pinpoint the type of emotions I felt, I could tell that it was ‘different’.

Maybe if time passes, I’d be able to read them soon as well.

“Well, it ended like that. We went to the karaoke room, sang songs, exchanged numbers, and that was it. Since then, no contact.”

With a sigh, Harumi shook her head.

From the first time I saw them, I thought they looked like they’d be diligent students, but they seemed to really be those kinds.

Hearing that, I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

“…What about you?”

Yu asked.

“Uh?”

“You went with Mako and other boys.”

“Ah.”

I laughed bitterly.

“We woke up much earlier than you guys.”

In fact, rather than saying those boys broke up with us, it was more accurate to say that, like Mako and I, we had no intention of following along, but it just ended up happening.

It ended up being that we brought along two extra because we simply had to match the number of people.

…No, to put it that way, us bringing Yu along was more like dragging him along anyway, so it could be said that the only one actually wanting a boyfriend in this situation was just Harumi.

Seeing Yu looking at me with wide eyes, I felt like I understood the reason why Harumi hadn’t gone well with those boys.

No matter how pretty someone is, how can you approach someone when all you see is a glaring expression?

…Though I also have this feeling that if Yu were happily smiling around, that could be a bit dangerous too.

As evening arrived, Yamashita Yu left the hospital room together with his friend Harumi.

Someone followed them out as if to see them off.

It was Koto Ne’s mother, Kagami.

Yu followed Kagami in his childhood.

At first, it was because she resembled his mom.

Later, it was simply because she treated Yu gently.

When he was very young, for a brief moment, he imagined something. If Kagami became Yu’s mom, wouldn’t he also get a little sister?

How wonderful it would be to form a close bond with her and live together in the same room as real siblings.

It was a dream that burst in an instant.

After that, Yu’s life became quite twisted. It was as if something was caught in his future.

The woman Yu admired like an older sister was now stuck next to his dad. Even when Yu’s dad looked troubled, she tried to sit in his mom’s place.

Koto Ne, who thought they could become sisters, ended up bringing her real sister along.

The woman he thought could be a mom transformed into someone else entirely.

No, she wasn’t particularly different from that person back then.

She remained gentle. As time passed, a bit more of a melancholic atmosphere grew around her, but she was still Kagami.

Someone who loved her daughter more than anyone else.

…Perhaps that’s why Yu had that kind of imagination.

“Yu-chan.”

“…”

Yu stopped walking at Kagami’s voice.

“I’ll go on ahead.”

Harumi quickly said that and dashed away. Even though she had just said not to run in the hospital hallway.

“…”

Kagami hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Have you been well all this time?”

No, I haven’t.

That thought didn’t come out.

It’s too late for that now.

Calling her ‘mom’ would be too much; she had already gone too far. Now, there was someone in Yu’s mom place as well as in hers.

“…Yeah.”

Yu just said that.

Kagami wandered for a while before bowing her head deeply.

“Um, Yu-chan.”

Kagami briefly hesitated, mimicking her daughter, then spoke.

“Whenever you have time, come visit us.”

“…”

Yu couldn’t manage to reply.

Somehow, it felt like if he opened his mouth, he would spill out anything and everything like before.

He just nodded his head slightly.

Kagami smiled as if relieved by just that.

Yu hastily turned around and walked down the hallway.

As quickly as possible, without getting caught by the nurse who had criticized Harumi earlier.

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