part2 · 088-ep88

Episode 88: Mizuki's Feelings

It was a quiet night.

Ren was already asleep.

Mizuki sat on the living room sofa, gazing blankly out the window, alone.

But—

the scene from earlier would not leave her head.

"...It's good."

Ren, saying that as the tears ran — he hadn't even realized he was crying.

The image rose in Mizuki's mind.

"......"

Her chest tightened.

It had been ten years since he'd eaten a proper meal. That alone was enough to bring him to tears.

It meant—

Ren's ten years had been exactly that cruel.

"...What could he have been eating?"

Inside the dungeon. Searching for anything edible. Securing water. Looking for somewhere to sleep.

Fighting monsters. Injured, with no one to turn to.

A life like that—

for ten years.

"......"

Mizuki lowered her eyes.

Imagination was all she had. In what kind of place. With what in his heart. Ren had lived out those ten years.

Just thinking about it made her sad.

"...Ren."

She called his name, softly. No answer. He must be asleep by now.

Mizuki recalled the words she'd heard earlier.

'...Once I was in, the exit was gone.'

"...The exit was gone, of all things."

Mizuki murmured.

Mizuki was an A-rank adventurer. She had entered and conquered many dungeons in her time.

Conquering dungeons was nothing unusual in today's world. Some dungeons were dangerous. Some were difficult.

But—

an exit that ceased to exist once you were inside. Of a dungeon like that, she had never heard.

"...A dungeon like that — does it really exist?"

Mizuki thought it through.

If he had truly been sealed in such a place, then his only way back out—was to conquer it.

And Ren had said it.

'...I cleared it.'

"......"

Ten years. In an abnormal dungeon with no exit. Surviving, all alone.

And—

in the end, he had cleared the dungeon and come home.

A certain figure surfaced in Mizuki's mind.

"...Unknown"

Rank 1 in the world ranking. The adventurer who had held the unshakable top spot for seven years. With power so overwhelming, some called them the strongest in the world.

But—

no one alive knew who they really were.

"......"

Mizuki fell silent.

Ren had been in a dungeon for ten years. He had conquered an abnormal dungeon and returned.

And—

the world had an Unknown who had sat at rank 1 for seven years running.

"...No way."

Something stirred, faintly, in Mizuki's chest.

Of course, there was no proof. Mizuki had no idea who Unknown was, either.

Only—

having just heard Ren's story, she couldn't keep that name out of her head.

"...But"

Mizuki gave a small shake of her head.

"There's no way..."

She stopped mid-sentence.

Mizuki stood and walked to the door of the room where Ren slept. She opened it.

Ren was sleeping quietly.

Right up until this afternoon, he had been the boy who'd suddenly disappeared ten years ago.

And now—

he was asleep in her home.

"......"

Mizuki gazed at him.

Was he Unknown? Or was it all just coincidence? She didn't know yet.

More than that—

right now, she wanted to think about the Ren in front of her.

Ten years. He had lived them all alone.

He had endured enough.

"...You don't have to suffer anymore, okay?"

Mizuki murmured, softly.

Ren, fast asleep, didn't answer. Mizuki smiled, just a little.

Her childhood friend, home again after ten years.

This time, for sure—

she would stay by his side.

The quiet night slipped slowly by.