“Tomorrow’s finally the Holy Knight exam, huh, big bro?”

“Looks like you’ve gotten used to calling me big bro too, Reina.”

Kenya Mikazuki and Reina Silfield were eating dinner together.

It had been nearly half a year now, so it all felt natural.

“Reina.”

“Yes?”

“Thanks.”

During meals, she would silently pass him whatever he wanted without him saying a word.

She knew exactly what Kenya desired and what sauce went best on each dish.

It feels just like a couple, Kenya thought. But aside from these little things, nothing remotely steamy had ever happened in their shared life together.

“Phew, that was delicious. Thanks for the meal.”

“It’s rewarding to cook when you eat so neatly, big bro.”

Reina cleared the plates.

Watching her, Kenya voiced a sudden thought.

“Hey, Reina. Do you really not remember anything from the past at all?”

He asked her.

Lately, she’d been doing well, smiling more often.

Maybe her memories were starting to come back.

“Bits and pieces. But they don’t fit together. Trying to remember properly… it still scares me.”

“Sorry! You don’t have to force it!”

From what she’d told him, forcing the memories brought fear.

Kenya had no idea what her past was like, but pushing her wasn’t right.

He regretted asking so casually.

“But I know I can’t keep running from it forever. It’s my own life, after all…”

“Take it slow. That’s fine.”

Reina looked down, glancing up at him timidly as she asked,

“I’ve been meaning to ask for a while now… Why are you so kind to me, big bro—no, Kenya? Why?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t get it. I can’t figure out why you treat me with such kindness… I pointed my sword at you, after all. And I’m an Earthguard—you’re Japanese, so you should hate me for it. Yet…”

Reina’s question hung in the air.

From the day they first met, Kenya had pestered her relentlessly.

Honestly, plenty of guys were like that.

All talk, no action. But he was different. She remembered their first encounter on the battlefield.

That day, she’d aimed her sword at him.

With hostility. With killing intent. Yet he’d done everything he could not to hurt her.

He’d fought the Earthguard forces with his life on the line to protect Kaguya.

And still.

“Why would you try to save someone like me?”

Why does he treasure me so much?

“Reina…”

Her words stirred Kenya’s memories.

(No, Reina. You’re the one who saved me… You saved me, the lonely one, all by myself.)

He recalled events from his previous world.

He’d been bullied in middle school.

His parents were never home, so word got out that he lived alone—like he’d been abandoned. The pitiful middle schooler became a target.

Once they had a mark, it escalated. No one stood up for him.

He came home to an empty house every day.

Going to school turned into agony.

Waking up in the morning became torture.

He obsessed over what would happen if he died.

Would those bullies regret it? Feel even a twinge of pain?

That was all he could think about.

Sacrificing his life seemed like the only way a boy like him could rebel.

Then, one day on the way home.

He saw a KOG commercial on a giant monitor and fell for that world in an instant.

It felt like an escape to somewhere else, a place where even he could be free.

He was captivated by the romance of robots.

So he scrimped on child support money to buy a full setup.

The day it arrived, he dove headfirst into that world.

And there.

(I met you for the first time. It was love at first sight.)

She was fair to everyone, straightforward with all.

Her world was only KOG.

She didn’t care that he had no parents. Are you strong in KOG? That was all she saw in him.

It was just virtual, of course.

No real conversations.

But as he got better, her gaze toward him changed.

She marveled at his growth, celebrated it, and looked straight at him with those eyes.

Nothing made him happier.

No one had ever seen the real him—the kid unloved by parents, friendless.

But you were different. You and Kaguya were different. He knew that world was fake.

That you were all created characters.

Even so.

Even so, he admired your cool, noble way of living.

In that world where no one saw Kenya, you became his goal.

To live like you—ignoring others’ stares, charging straight down his own path.

He wanted to become that cool.

“I admired you… so much.”

“Me? Someone like you admired me?”

“Heh, I used to be weak too, you know? Really weak, a crybaby, all alone… I could only curl up and do nothing.”

“I can’t believe that.”

“You supported me. Selfish of me to think so, but I always aimed to be like you. I wanted your approval so bad, I thought of you every day. And before I knew it, I…”

Kenya looked straight at Reina.

His eyes glistened; he was getting sentimental.

Remembering his past self, that despair, feeling like the world’s loneliest soul.

And then, his mouth slipped.

“Had fallen for you.”

He’d confessed.

“Eh?”

“Ah…”

Both their faces turned beet red right after.

Swept up in emotion, lulled by their daily routine, Kenya had blurted out his feelings to her face.

“Uh, um! Th-that was… N-no, it’s too late to take it back now. I like you, Reina. For real. Coming to this world made me sure—these feelings are the real deal. I can say it with my chest puffed out now.”

No pretending it didn’t happen.

Riding the momentum, Kenya confessed fully. Reina froze.

“Ah! But first things first—we’ve got the Holy Knight exam, and the Empire Sword Martial Festival! Forget I said anything for now!”

“…”

Reina bowed her head, staring silently at the floor.

She seemed to be trembling, but she forced out words.

“R-right… yeah.”

Kenya couldn’t see her expression.

Still facing down, she turned her back to him.

“Sorry, I’m heading to bed.”

“Oh, uh, yeah. Sorry for putting you on the spot like that.”

“N-no!”

And with that, Reina retreated to her room.

(I screwed up big time—!!)

Kenya clutched his head, writhing in embarrassment.

“M-man, I hope she doesn’t hate me now…”

◇ Reina’s Perspective

“Hah… hah… hah…”

Back in her room, she shut the door.

Leaning against it, her trembling legs gave out, unable to hold her weight.

She slid down to the floor, slumping against the door.

“Wh-what? What’s this…? Why am I…”

Reina didn’t understand.

She didn’t know what this feeling was, so she patted her burning-hot cheeks with both hands.

Realizing her face was flushed crimson.

The girl who knew nothing of love didn’t recognize the emotion’s name.

But her body knew. Her heart was already stirring.

“N-no way… What’s wrong with me?”

Her mouth curved into a grin against her will.

She could hear her heartbeat.

Pounding, racing.

Embarrassment threatened to overwhelm her.

“My chest hurts… and it’s so… hot?”

What melted the frozen girl’s heart?

The straight-shooting boy’s warmth?