Chapter 260 - A Distorted Normality
He's just an ordinary young man, was Chitose's first impression of the Acrobat—Haru Kasuga.
He was composed for his age and observant of others. But did he have that special aura like the [Sword Queen] or other renowned rankers...?
"—............"
The answer was no.
Chitose glanced at the back seat in the rearview mirror. The young man sitting there quietly still looked like nothing more than an ordinary university student.
Chitose knew of every single one of Haru the Acrobat's battles. That was precisely why he was inwardly perplexed by the difference between the young man here in the real world and the one in the virtual world.
"I've had you looked into to some extent. I apologize, but it's part of my position."
When he deliberately dropped those words out of the blue, the young man was, of course, surprised—
But the look of confusion lasted only a moment.
It seemed his quick wit and sharp mind were the same here as they were over there. After another moment's hesitation, the young man opened his mouth, watching Chitose, who had paused, for his reaction.
"Then you probably know about that thing from my high school days, right?"
He was visibly nervous, but he still had enough composure to crack a joke. Was he not easily intimidated... or was he just good at putting up a front?
He managed a smile, though it wasn't quite natural—just a little stiff.
"That thing, yes... —Juggling a frantic part-time job with your studies. What's astonishing is that you didn't break your spirit or your body, and you continued that for three years right on the edge of what's healthy."
"W-Well... whether it was 'healthy' or not probably depends on your point of view."
"Well, you at least passed the [Arcadia] screening. That proves you pushed yourself to the limit without any lasting physical or mental abnormalities—that's some serious grit."
"Uh... thanks?"
He felt that 'obsession' might have been a more accurate word than 'grit,' but he'd chosen his words carefully.
And then—
""————————""
Their eyes met for a moment in the mirror, and Chitose cut off his next words.
—Stop right there.
His eyes had told him so with an undeniable force.
Chitose—they—knew of Haru Kasuga's past.
Conventional morality and respect for a 'person's' privacy had no place in it. With permission from on high, 'Yotsuya' simply observed its 'players.'
To take on this job, Chitose had abandoned more than half of the common sense he was supposed to uphold as a human being. One couldn't be a servant of God if they were bound by guilt or ethics.
Therefore, Chitose knew the roots of what made him who he was.
That was precisely why—
"We'll be there soon. Do you prefer tea or coffee?"
"Ah... Coffee, I guess."
the fact that he could act like an ordinary young man right now.
"Then I'll have them prepare some good coffee."
made him seem like a distorted being—one who stood alongside the special ones.
Mostly an interlude, so another chapter later today.