Shimizu Ken learned more details about Amamiya Iori's past from her own lips. Some of what she told him was new to him, though he already knew parts of her story from previous loops.
No one can remember every single thing that happened over ten or even twenty years. Childhood memories are even harder to recall. Even if we try to remember when we grow up, only a few strong moments remain clear.
For Ken, that time long ago had been an ordinary encounter after school, though he now realized its significance to Iori.
But for Iori, Ken's appearance then had been the light that illuminated her life, the only thing she could hold on to.
Her world had been so narrow, growing up with Kondo Yuuichi and his family, and even her own mother had forcefully insisted she live that way.
When Iori finished her story, a memory suddenly resurfaced in Ken's mind. It was about what Amamiya Iori had just recounted. The encounter with Amamiya Iori became clear in Ken's mind.
She had not lied or fabricated anything. Everything she said was true.
At this moment, Ken finally realized. Underneath such a twisted childhood shadow, the current Amamiya Iori had likely become what is known as a yandere... And she was holding a knife at him.
"My dear, back then I wore a false mask to meet the expectations of those around me, chaining myself up. You were the one who broke those chains, so why do you want to abandon me now...... I know you are very kind, my dear. But you are kind to everyone. It makes me uneasy, fearing that your feelings for me are merely kindness, and that it could be anyone. But I only have you...... only you!"
Amamiya Iori suddenly swung the fruit knife with force, as if to cut the air in front of her.
Ken, having watched some anime about yanderes, had some understanding. In her current state, Amamiya Iori undoubtedly fit all the characteristics of a yandere. Furthermore, she was currently on the verge of collapse due to extreme emotional stimulation.
Ken understood this very well, but he wasn't flustered at all. Amamiya Iori claimed to have regained fragmented memories from the "first loop." This meant that her feelings of love for Shimizu Ken from the first loop had also returned.
If that was the case, Ken could attempt to leverage the affection he had cultivated in the previous loop to appeal to her emotions, though he was unsure of the outcome. Amamiya Iori, despite her limited experiences outside of her controlled environment, was capable of intense emotions and actions, but not deep cunning. If you stripped away her yandere traits, she would simply be a beautiful, infatuated girl who was head-over-heels in love with him. For Ken, who had successfully "conquered" her before, a little bit of sweet-talking and ambiguous words would surely make Amamiya Iori put down the knife and fall into his embrace once more, just like in the first loop.
These were not Ken's baseless speculations. The hesitant look on Amamiya Iori's face, her trembling arm, were proof of this. At this moment, Amamiya Iori was waiting—waiting for this man to once again say he loved her, that he would love her for life, and only her.
Then, she could respond like she did back then, "I love you too," and fall into his embrace.
However...
"I'm sorry, Iori. Back then... I lied to you."
Hearing Ken's words, Amamiya Iori's pupils constricted. She froze, and the knife almost slipped from her hand.
"My dear...... what are you saying? You're joking, right?! It's a joke?! Tell me it's a joke?!"
Her voice trembled. Her tightly clenched hands and her shoulders, which seemed to be bearing a heavy burden, trembled uncontrollably. Her heart must have been shaking too.
"No. I mean it. At least... more than when I said I loved you back then."
Ken struggled to look at Amamiya Iori's twisted, pained expression, feeling the weight of his past actions. In the first loop, he had interacted with Amamiya Iori because the system required it, including holding her and saying he liked her. Even the kiss...
Much of it had not been his own choice, driven by the system's demands. Initially, he had treated her more as a virtual character than a real person, but his perspective was changing. He had repeatedly deceived her according to the system's instructions, all to complete the capture mission...
But now, he was beginning to realize that he wasn't the only one acting with self-will. Amamiya Iori and the others were no different from him; they were also human beings living in this world. Therefore, when Ken saw her as a living person, he could no longer continue to deceive her.
"......"
The second hand of the clock ticked, slow but loud. After a long pause, Amamiya Iori's voice echoed in the room again.
"...You're awful! So awful I can't even hate you enough! Why?! Why don't you get it?! Sometimes you must lie and stay with your lie for me! If not... if not......"
Amamiya Iori seemed unable to control her emotions, her hand gripping the fruit knife trembling violently, reflecting her inner turmoil.
"Ah... I understand now. My dear's body is being used by another mind. Yes, that must be it. Only I can bring your true mind back. Don't worry, my dear. I will save you very soon."
Ken felt a surge of disorientation as Iori's emotional intensity peaked, though the floor did not physically shake. The world seemed to distort around him, and a suffocating sensation, not strong but undeniably real, suddenly struck him.
"I'm sorry, Iori. I don't want to lie to you anymore......"
Ken squeezed the words out of his throat like a release. Finally, he had said it. In two years, he had never felt so liberated. Even if a knife was aimed at him the next second, he no longer wanted to tell that lie.
"Ahhhhhhh! Shut up! Be quiet! My dear would never say such things! You dare use my dear's body to speak to me like that?! Get out! Get out of my dear's body!"
After her emotional outburst reached its peak, Amamiya Iori became extremely calm, her voice devoid of any fluctuation:
"Do not worry, my dear. I will take back the you from that time."
Facing Amamiya Iori, who was walking towards him with the knife, Ken chose to close his eyes. He had no intention of resisting.
Up until this point, Ken had mistakenly believed that her twisted family and childhood had turned Amamiya Iori into a yandere. But if that were true, Amamiya Iori would have already been in her current pathological state during the first loop. This meant that Shimizu Ken himself had turned Amamiya Iori into this. If he hadn't started that damn second loop, she wouldn't have thought he abandoned her, and she wouldn't have become like this.
This was what Ken thought—until he suddenly felt something.
"......!"
"Mmm......"
He opened his eyes, stunned to find Amamiya Iori kissing him. There was no pain as he had expected; the contact of her lips felt warm and unexpected.
"It's just like that time......"
Ken was stunned by the sudden action. As Amamiya Iori pulled away from his lips, her cheeks flushed red, and she whispered, "We... kissed again."
"How..."
Her shy, tear-stained smile was so beautiful that Ken's heart pounded wildly, overwhelmed by the moment.
"My dear, I kept thinking about why I live. Was it for Yuuichi and his family? Or was I only meant to follow the path my mother set for me? I kept thinking. But the truth is, I do not live for those things."
Amamiya Iori continued speaking. "I think I was born so I could meet you. When we first met, I felt something strange about you. Later, that feeling became love. One day, my whole mind was full of you. I only wanted to stay with you, to be someone you could lean on."
"To me, my dear is more important than anyone. I only spoke the words others gave me, but you took my hand and showed me many things... You are the one I like so much, so much that I cannot stop!"
Tonight, Iori spoke more than ever. Her voice sounded like she was suppressing pain, but Ken listened intently to every word.
She lifted her head, her eyes red and swollen from bloodshot capillaries, her lips bitten white, her small body trembling slightly from crying. Ken once again clearly realized how much he had hurt her. To soothe the heart he had wounded, Ken subconsciously reached out to stroke her head, but Amamiya Iori kissed him again, catching him off guard.
Besides the soft touch, there was a slightly salty taste.
"Is it salty because you cried?"
"Well... after all that happened. You made me cry, my dear, so you must take responsibility."
Amamiya Iori's words, "you must take responsibility," blocked any possibility of Ken escaping, so he gave her a wry smile.
"I'm really sorry."
Ken held the still-trembling Amamiya Iori tightly. Amamiya Iori felt her back getting wet. She must have thought Ken was crying from emotion, so she held him even tighter.
"Yes. Holding each other really helps us calm down," Ken thought. But in truth...
The more he tried to calm down, the more his emotions surged. It felt like a part of him was trying to process the overwhelming guilt and affection. A sense of unease spread through his mind, making him unable to settle down. He wanted to recall something but couldn't, and the words wouldn't come out.
What is happening...
What is this feeling...
There was a feeling of happiness in his chest.
At the same time, there was a sense of sadness.
There were times he felt happy.
But there was also a strong sense of sorrow.
Various complex emotions disturbed Ken's thoughts, disappearing and then reappearing. Like a tide advancing and retreating, it washed over Ken's heart.
At this moment, as if to stop him from probing further, a knife seemed to plunge into Ken's heart, a deep sting that made him unable to breathe. His body trembled uncontrollably, and he could only hide it by holding her tighter.
Suddenly, something quietly slipped out, soaking the back of the girl in his arms. He thought he had a runny nose. But it turned out to be something flowing from Ken's eyes.
Tears. Like drops of guilt and self-reproach quietly growing in the dark.
On the other hand, Amamiya Iori's tears slowed, her emotions stabilizing as she clung to Ken. Her expression softened, though a hint of lingering pain remained in her eyes. She found solace in his presence, her heart fluctuating between love and residual hurt.
Notes:
• Amamiya Iori - JK heroine; targeted; her mother is the hostage. Long-haired and busty.
• Kondo Yuuichi - Original main protagonist; timid; Iori’s childhood friend; freezes despite push.