Chapter 4: Takashi-kun Returns from the Battlefield, Just Wanting to Live with His War Buddies
1
Parting ways with Rinko, I hightail it back home.
I leap from rooftop to rooftop, cutting through the residential area as fast as humanly possible.
This is bad.
Natalie and Sherry are arguing right in front of Nee-san.
This is really bad.
Knowing those two idiots, once their blood’s up, they’ll start brawling without a care for who’s around.
Back in the military, their fights dragged dozens of bio-soldiers to the infirmary.
And those were bio-soldiers like us.
If Nee-san, a civilian, gets caught in the crossfire, a hospital trip won’t cut it.
Worst case, she could die.
This is seriously messed up.
I’ve gotta get back now. I feel bad for ditching Rinko, but this isn’t the time.
I sprint at top speed, vaulting from roof to roof.
Home’s about four kilometers away. With my legs, I should make it in a minute.
“Please, Nee-san, be okay…!”
When I reach the house, I spot Nee-san crouched at the entrance, clutching her head.
“Nee-san! You alright!?”
I rush over, and she throws herself at me, sobbing with a “Uweeeen!”
“T-Tak-kun… i-it’s bad… it’s really bad…!”
She clings to my neck, taking deep, shaky breaths—suu-haa, suu-haa.
Seeing her act like her usual self eases my nerves.
“Thank god you’re okay. Where’re Natalie and Sherry?”
“Sherry? That girl’s Sherry-chan?”
“Yeah. Ciel Iceland’s her real name, Sherry’s just a nickname. Where are they?”
Nee-san points toward the backyard.
“Uh, they’re over there, yelling at each other in English and… fighting…”
So they moved their brawl to avoid dragging Nee-san into it? Guess they’ve got some sense left.
Relieved, I start toward the backyard, but Nee-san grabs my arm.
“Tak-kun! N-no, you can’t go! It’s dangerous!”
Her face is desperate, practically radiating fear.
A bad feeling creeps up.
“Did you… see something?”
“W-what…?”
“Them fighting.”
“Y-yeah…”
“Anything weird? Like… their bodies changing color or something?”
Her expression shifts to How’d you know?
“Y-yeah! They were both… glowing all dark and creepy! Tak-kun, what is that? What’s going on…?”
…Ugh.
This is a mess. They’re both completely pissed off, aren’t they?
Sounds like they’re even using their trump card—Film.
I head to the backyard, and sure enough, Natalie and Sherry are going at it.
No prissy distance-fighting for them. They’re face-to-face, feet planted, trading punches like real men.
Each swing sends a shockwave through the air, booming with dull thuds—bokkon, bokkon.
Their brawl, practically on par with heavy weaponry, is wrecking the terrain around them.
What the hell am I supposed to do with this?
They’ve turned the backyard into a disaster zone. Dad’s gonna kill me.
“Hey! Knock it off already, you two!”
I call out lightly, but they don’t even flinch. Blood’s gone straight to their heads.
“Damn idiots… looks like I’ll have to step in to stop ‘em…”
“Tak-kun! No way! Stop!!”
Nee-san tackles my waist with a shoulder charge.
“You’ll die if you get in there! Please, don’t!”
“Look, we can’t just let this go on. The backyard’s a mess already.”
As if on cue, Natalie lands a heel drop on Sherry, carving a massive crater in the ground.
Sherry, unfazed, snaps back into stance and slams a cannon-like liver blow into Natalie’s side.
If this keeps up, the whole neighborhood’s gonna be flattened.
“I-I know, but…! You’ll die in that tornado of a fight, Tak-kun!”
Nee-san’s desperate to stop me.
I get it. Anyone seeing this for the first time would freak.
Natalie’s gorgeous blonde hair and pale skin are now a sickly reddish-black. Sherry’s silver hair and fair complexion are tinged bluish-black.
They look like monsters.
No wonder Nee-san’s scared. Two freaks clashing with superhuman strength? Yeah, that’d terrify anyone.
“Let’s just wait till they calm down, okay? Please?”
Her brows knit in a pleading look. I get where she’s coming from, but we can’t just sit here.
“No way we can ignore this. If the neighbors see, we’re screwed.”
“No, it’s too dangerous!”
“I can handle it. I can do the same stuff they can. Just watch.”
“Huh?”
Even I’m not dumb enough to wade in there without prep.
Like Natalie and Sherry, I activate my Film.
Debris cells surge from within, coating my skin in a silver membrane.
“Tak-kun…?”
Leaving a stunned Nee-san behind, I charge in, grab both their fists, and yank them apart.
“Enough already! You’re freaking Nee-san out! Cool it!”
My shout finally stops them.
Noticing me at last, they dispel the Film coating their skin and start making excuses.
“Takashi!! It’s not my fault! Sherry just came at me outta nowhere!!”
“Takashi-kun! I’m not to blame! It’s Natalie-san’s fault! She tried to pull a fast one!”
“Pull a fast one? What’s that supposed to mean! Don’t make crap up!”
“It’s not made up! You did try to pull a fast one!”
The two idiots keep yapping.
At least the fight’s stopped, so that’s a relief. I dispel my own Film.
“What’s your deal, Sherry? Coming all the way to my place—what’s up?”
At my casual question, her signature sanpaku eyes narrow, her face twisting with suspicion.
“What are you talking about? I’ve been waiting for your return this whole time! When are you coming back to the military?”
“Huh? I’m not going back.”
“…What?”
Sherry’s clearly rattled. Her mouth flaps like a fish, tears welling up.
“B-but… Commander Garnet said… you were just on temporary leave, that you’d definitely come back… Your name’s still on the roster…”
What’s she on about? Is she misunderstanding something?
“My name’s still there ‘cause they wouldn’t let me come back to Japan otherwise.”
“Wh… no way… So you’re… staying in Japan… for good?”
“Yup.”
Tears pool in her sanpaku eyes.
They don’t just pool—they spill over, streaming down her face.
Like a dam bursting, Sherry starts bawling at the top of her lungs.
“What’s wrong, Sherry? Why’re you crying?”
“Uwaaaa! That’s so cruel! That’s just too much!”
She wails like a kid throwing a tantrum—ueeen, ueeen.
What the hell’s this? I can’t deal.
“Natalie… you know anything? She’s acting even more pathetic than usual.”
“Nope~! She just swung at me outta nowhere, so I didn’t hear squat. She’s annoying as hell, so let’s ship this idiot back to the military~”
Natalie glares at the sobbing Sherry with a demonic scowl.
She’s seriously pissed.
If Natalie’s this mad, Sherry must’ve started it.
“Let’s at least hear her out. Sounds like there’s something going on.”
“Ugh, fine~”
“Sherry, stop crying and come inside. We’ll hear you out.”
“Bieeeee! Bieeeee!”
“Still such a crybaby, huh…”
As I chop Sherry’s head, Nee-san sidles up.
“Tak-kun… w-what’s going on…?”
“Hell if I know.”
“That glowing earlier… what was it? Are you hurt? You okay?”
“Oh… yeah, I’m fine. Sorry for worrying you.”
Feels like Nee-san’s stumbling onto military secrets left and right.
I don’t wanna spill, but it’s getting hard to avoid.
I flash an awkward laugh to brush off her worried stare.
2
We sit across from Sherry-chan at the table.
Looking at her now, Sherry-chan’s face is stupidly cute.
No… “cute” doesn’t cut it. She’s downright mystical in her beauty.
Silver bobbed hair, skin so pale it’s almost translucent, and those big sanpaku eyes on a tiny face.
If she wasn’t a mess of tears and snot, I’d probably be staring.
Compared to Natalie-chan’s sunflower-like charm, she’s a different kind of stunning.
Between Fumika-chan, Rinko-chan, and now her, Tak-kun’s surrounded by way too many gorgeous girls.
It’s a problem…
A real problem…
“Here, wipe your face.”
Tak-kun tosses a box of tissues.
He’s treating her so casually, it’s like he doesn’t even see her as a girl.
That’s kinda impressive, considering she’s this pretty.
“Takashi-kun… I’m terribly hurt… Please, wipe my tears with your own hands…”
At Sherry-chan’s spoiled demand, Tak-kun’s face sours like he’s bitten something rotten.
“Do it yourself. You’re not a kid.”
“Oh, come on! Show a little kindness, or I’ll never recover! Please! Hurry up!”
“Ugh, fine… Natalie, wipe her face.”
“Nishishishi. On it~”
With a wicked grin, Natalie-chan yanks out seven or eight tissues, pins Sherry-chan’s head in place, and starts roughly scrubbing her face.
“Ow! That hurts! Ouch! Why’re you making Natalie-san do it!? I wanted Takashi-kun to—”
“No need to hold back, Sherry! We’re buddies, right~? Here, here, here, here~”
“Ow! Stop it! It hurts! Quit it!!”
Sherry-chan slaps Natalie-chan’s hands away, huffing and puffing like a cornered animal.
Her eyes tear up again, but Tak-kun steers back to the point.
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“So what’s the deal? You came all the way to my place—something up?”
“Takashi-kun, you should be way more smitten with me! A crying beauty’s right in front of you—it’s only polite to be all sweet and flirty!”
“Quit talking nonsense and answer my question.”
“Ugh… be nice to me…”
Mumbling complaints, Sherry-chan starts explaining, bit by bit.
“After the war ended… I heard you’d gone back to your homeland… so I was preparing for when you’d return…”
“Okay, hold up. I keep hearing this—why do you think I’m going back to the military?”
Tak-kun’s face is all confusion, like he’s got no clue what’s going on.
“It’s because the military announced, ‘Takashi-kun hasn’t retired. He’s only back in his homeland to check on his family, so he’ll return soon.’”
“Huh? What’s that about? Why would they…?”
“Well, looking back, it makes sense. You got up and vanished, and everyone was freaking out. ‘Where’s Takashi? Bring him back!’—it was practically a riot. They probably had to say that to keep things under control.”
“Man, I really screwed over everyone… Should’ve explained myself before leaving…”
Tak-kun’s shoulders slump at her words.
Seeing him so down, Natalie-chan jumps in to cheer him up.
“No need to beat yourself up, Takashi~ It’s not like you owed anyone a report or anything~”
“…You think?”
“Hell yeah~ Tons of people bailed without a word, you know~”
“Guess you’re right.”
Was Tak-kun really that popular? A riot just because he left? That’s kind of a big deal.
I think he had some nickname like “Arrival Point,” humanity’s final endpoint or something, didn’t he?
As I’m mulling this over, Sherry-chan steers the conversation back.
“So… I bought a house… A big white one with a huge garden…”
“A house? Damn, that’s bold. Pretty gutsy move.”
Tak-kun flashes a grin, but Sherry-chan’s face just gets gloomier.
The life completely drains from her expression, and she mutters under her breath.
“I used every penny I had… to buy it for the three of us—me, Takashi-kun, and Natalie-san—to live together…”
“““Huh?”””
My voice, Tak-kun’s, and Natalie-chan’s overlap in shock.
Sherry-chan’s voice breaks into sobs.
“The war with the Debris is over… I thought if we had a house, we could all live happily together, so I bought a big one… sniff… But then Natalie-san sent me that picture, gloating about going to high school with Takashi~ sniff… I didn’t get it, so I rushed to Japan…”
“S-sorry, that’s a lot to unpack… Wait, didn’t you go back to your hometown? That’s what I heard.”
“…What?”
Wiping her tears and snot, Sherry-chan tilts her head.
“Go back? Why would I? I don’t have any family… Who told you that?”
“Sōkan said so. Right, Natalie?”
“Yup~ If it wasn’t for that, I would’ve dragged Sherry along to Japan with us~”
“What…!?”
Sherry-chan’s speechless as Tak-kun explains what happened back then.
“She said you were living happily with a lover in your hometown, so we shouldn’t bother you… That not true?”
“Of course it’s not true!! I’ve never had a lover!! That’s complete nonsense!!”
She slams the table, her sanpaku eyes narrowing in fury.
“I knew something was off… They told me you’d come back eventually, so I didn’t even get your contact info… And Natalie-san disappeared right when you did…”
Not satisfied with just pounding the table, she digs her nails into it, scraping out a grating screech.
Her voice starts trembling.
“This… this makes me look like a total idiot… sob… I spent my entire fortune on that house… and it’s all for nothing… It’s too much…!”
I don’t know why, but seeing Sherry-chan cry like that makes me feel so sorry for her.
From what she’s said, none of this is her fault. It’s just too pitiful.
Unable to sit still, I grab a tissue and wipe the tears and snot off her face.
“You okay? That must’ve been rough…”
“Sniff… Th-thank you… What a kind lady…”
Sherry-chan rubs her face against the tissue like a puppy.
She’s cute, and I feel bad for her, but… every little thing she does just reeks of pathetic. Such a waste of a gorgeous girl…
“Sōkan’s such a liar, huh~ That kinda BS would’ve been found out in a heartbeat~”
“She probably wanted to keep Sherry in the military… but that’s too cruel to even laugh at.”
Tak-kun stands, pulling his phone from his pocket and turning to Sherry-chan.
“How much was that house you bought?”
“Uh? T-two and a half million dollars.”
“Two and a half mil, huh. I’ll talk to the military and see if they’ll buy it back.”
“…Huh?”
“Also, hang tight while I call my folks. Shouldn’t be a problem, I think.”
“Huh…? You mean…”
Tak-kun answers in his usual laid-back tone.
“Let’s live together from now on, Sherry. Oh, but we’re splitting living expenses, so you better pay your share.”
At his words, Sherry-chan’s eyes go wide.
Even with her face a mess of tears and snot, her beaming smile is downright ethereal.
“Takashi-kuuun!! I wuv youuu!!”
She leaps at him, and Tak-kun catches her.
“Ugh, your snot’s getting on me. Gross~”
He grumbles, but his smile is gentle.
3
“How’d you know my contact info, Natalie-san? I don’t remember giving it to you.”
“Got it from Lauran~ Cost me three bucks, though~”
“My personal info’s worth three dollars…?”
Tak-kun steps out to make a call, leaving the three of us behind.
Sherry-chan calmed down a lot from her emotional outburst and is now chatting with Natalie-chan in a soft, easy tone.
They’re so cute when they’re just talking normally… It’s like looking at a painting.
“Whatever. More importantly, what’s your deal with this lady? Introduce us.”
Sherry-chan turns to me with a bright smile.
That smile… a regular guy would’ve been floored by it. Whew, close call.
“She’s Takashi’s Nee-chan~ Total bro-con, but super nice~”
“Oh! Takashi-kun’s older sister! My goodness, where are my manners!”
Sherry-chan kneels formally, placing three fingers on the floor and bowing deeply.
Her movements are so natural, you’d never guess she’s a foreigner. Her femininity is off the charts—I’m shaking.
“I am Ciel Iceland, Hybrid Type-11 Y-Class Special Bio-Soldier! In the military, I went by Sherry, so please, dear sister, call me Sherry as well!”
“Uh… th-thank you for being so polite. I’m Karin Shibuzaki. Nice to meet you.”
Following her lead, I bow back.
Hybrid? Y-Class? She said it so fast I couldn’t catch it.
“Sherry~ Telling Nee-chan your model type won’t mean anything to her~”
“Huh? You haven’t explained Dozification?”
“Nope~ Takashi’s got a rule. We only give the bare minimum about our bodies. He’s worried the military might come sniffing around~”
“Hmm… Typical stick-in-the-mud Takashi-kun. If the military says anything, we just crush ‘em, right?”
“Told him the same thing~”
Dozification? What’re they talking about?
Something about their bodies… maybe their modifications?
This is a perfect chance to ask something I’ve been dying to know.
“Um, so… when you two were fighting earlier, there was this dark, smoky stuff around your bodies, right? What was that?”
Natalie-chan had a reddish-black glow, Sherry-chan was bluish-black, and Tak-kun was silver—some kind of smoky film covering them.
Honestly, it’s been bugging me.
The moment I saw it, I was so terrified I could barely breathe. My instincts screamed it was bad news.
I’m so worried about what that stuff’s doing to their bodies.
“Uh, um… Natalie-san! We’d get in trouble if we just told Nee-sama about Film, right? Takashi-kun would be pissed, wouldn’t he?”
“Dunno~ Why don’t you try and find out~?”
“There’s no upside to trying… I-I can’t say anything. Can you ask Takashi-kun directly?”
Sherry-chan clams up, looking away.
She’s dodging the question. That won’t do!
“Tak-kun just says he’s fine and won’t tell me more! Please, Sherry-chan, Natalie-chan! I won’t tell Tak-kun—can you just explain!?”
“I-I mean, I’d be fine talking about it, but… spilling something Takashi-kun’s keeping secret feels…”
“It’s not like we should be talking after showing off Film like that~ But it’s not a fun story, and you’d just regret hearing it~”
They’re both tight-lipped.
Desperate, I pull out my last resort—I drop to my knees and bow.
“I’m begging you! Please!”
“W-whoa! Nee-chan!? What’re you doing!?”
“P-please, raise your head! This is embarrassing!”
“I’m not just asking out of curiosity! I’m worried about your bodies! I just want to know if you’re really okay… Please… tell me…”
I bare my honest feelings to the shaken pair.
I owe Tak-kun and Natalie-chan so much.
Not just for what happened with Amagawa-kun, but because without them, humanity might’ve been wiped out.
They sacrificed everything to save us.
Now that peace is here, I want them to be happy.
They’ve done so much for humanity—they deserve to be happy.
That’s why I need to know if the modifications are hurting them… I just have to.
If there’s anything I can do, I’ll do it.
“Nee-chan, can you lift your head?”
Natalie-chan’s voice is gentle, almost coaxing.
I hesitantly look up, and both of them are wearing these troubled yet oddly happy expressions.
“See? Told ya Nee-chan’s super nice~”
“Honestly… I’m shocked. To think you saw our fight up close and instead of being scared, you’re worried about us…”
“Wish I could show this to the normie grunts in the military. They could learn a thing or two from Nee-chan.”
“Special mech-soldiers would cry with joy… They’re so starved for being treated like humans…”
They turn to me, their beautiful faces softened with warm smiles.
“What do you wanna know first~? We’ll tell you anything except the really classified stuff~”
“Just keep it a secret from Takashi-kun, okay? I can’t deal with him getting mad at me.”
Natalie-chan and Sherry-chan smile so kindly, so genuinely.
They must’ve felt my sincerity, because they both agree without hesitation.
“Thank you! Natalie-chan! Sherry-chan!”
I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for their willingness.
“So, no side effects at all, right?”
“Nope~ If I had to pick one, maybe we get hungrier easier? That’s about it~”
Natalie-chan answers casually, munching on a rice cracker.
I was worried about shortened lifespans or health issues, but it sounds like there’s nothing like that.
“You called it Film, right? It felt so… ominous. What is it? Does it hurt your bodies?”
“It’s like a part of our bodies, so it doesn’t really affect us.”
“O-okay… That’s a relief.”
I let out a sigh, my chest loosening.
From what they’re saying, the modifications don’t seem to cause any problems.
I’m reassured after hearing the most important thing, but then Natalie-chan and Sherry-chan start spilling military secrets like it’s nothing.
“So, basically~ All modified soldiers are called bio-soldiers, but technically, there’s mech-soldiers, bio-soldiers, special mech-soldiers, and special bio-soldiers. Takashi and us? We’re special bio-soldiers~ We’re part of a special unit, separate from the unmodified normie soldiers~”
“Bio-soldiers are those who successfully receive a certain reagent. It massively boosts physical strength, recovery, and regeneration abilities.”
“Compared to mech-soldiers, our combat abilities are higher, but not many people have the aptitude. What was the success rate for bio-soldier conversion again~?”
“Less than fifty percent, I believe. Oh, and if it fails, you die instantly from rejection.”
“…What?”
D-did they just say something insane? Instant death? That’s… that’s impossible…
I’m speechless, but they keep going with their carefree exposé.
“To become a special bio-soldier, you need multiple doses of the reagent—at least five. With a fifty percent success rate each time, a lot of people die~”
“And there’s more conditions. The bio-soldier reagent comes in twenty-six types, A to Z. To become a special bio-soldier, you need at least five different types. The success rate for that is stupidly low… Oh, and if you get a rejection reaction even once, you’re dead.”
“By the way, Sherry’s eleven types? That’s a ton~ Seriously abnormal~”
“Says the one who got over a hundred doses of Type A. A hundred? No wonder the Debris ran screaming when they saw you.”
“You’re one to talk, Sherry. Regenerating half your body in seconds? That’s not human~”
“I don’t want to hear that from someone who rips H-steel apart with her bare hands.”
They sling “monster” back and forth, laughing.
They’re talking so lightly, but this is some wild stuff, isn’t it?
People died just trying to become soldiers for the battlefield? It’s a miracle they’re all okay…
I’m floored, but then Tak-kun comes back from his call.
At the same time, Natalie-chan and Sherry-chan exchange a glance.
We’re done talking—that’s the look on their faces.
“Sherry, can you send the military your account details later? I got them to agree to pay the full amount.”
“R-really!? It was such a huge sum, I’d half given up… Who did you talk to?”
“It’s Sōkan’s lie, so I made her clean it up. She was grumbling, like, ‘Grr, fine…’ or something.”
“Serves her right~”
Despite their brutal pasts, the three of them don’t let it show.
They survived that nightmare and still laugh harder than anyone.
If I had gone to war instead of Tak-kun… could I have come back smiling like this?
Probably not.
My heart would’ve shattered for sure.
Seeing Tak-kun act no different than before the war, completely unchanged, I feel a flicker of unease.
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