Chapter 5: Fiction That Encroaches on Reality

Profile 1

A loli who looks like an elementary or middle school girl, with completely dead eyes. Despite her appearance, she speaks and acts like a mature adult, and often teases Matoi and the Anchors as a joke. She calls herself a woman in her thirties.

She is the squad’s emotional anchor. Calm and able to see the situation clearly, she is often the one who decides whether they should retreat or push forward.

She likes pure, easily deceived people.

She dislikes people who do nothing but lie.

While I was smoking a cigarette behind the school building, the protagonist I had called over finally arrived. …When you put it into words like that, I sound like some lowlife delinquent.

"Oh, you shameless harem bastard. You looked pretty happy getting along with Hibari."

I immediately started talking to him with a smug grin. Exactly the sort of thing a punk would do.

"Well, yeah, I was happy about it... But it wasn't romantic or anything."

"Yeah, I figured."

Mana is definitely romantically interested in him, but for the others, there aren't any signs of that for now.

They all have episodes up to affection level 5, though, so I suppose there is a future where they could fall for him.

Thinking about that made me irritated as a former guy. Seriously, what an enviable bastard.

Maybe I should tease him a little.

I crushed my cigarette against the ashtray and lowered my face slightly.

"Then..."

"Hm?"

I timidly raised my head and looked at him from underneath my lashes.

"──What would you do if I told you I was in love with you?"

I stared straight into his eyes. He seemed to freeze for just a moment, but then quickly gave me an exasperated smile.

"I'd suspect you were a fake."

"Tch. You really do catch on quick."

Annoyed, I took a drag and slowly exhaled.

The white smoke drifted lazily upward before dissolving into the air.

"So, did you manage to get closer to Hazuki?"

"More than before. But I still feel like there's a wall between us."

"Well, obviously."

Hazuki isn't some easy-to-win heroine.

...Though she does have her easy moments.

But getting to her core is still pretty difficult.

I know it's something hard to accomplish, but even so, I need this guy to reach that core. It's necessary for the happy ending.

I drew the smoke deep into my lungs, using it to dull my guilt.

"I think you've already built a decent relationship with her. Hazuki will outright reject you if she doesn't like something. But I want you to go deeper. You won't be able to save her unless you touch the things she's fighting for, what she's thinking as she fights, and the kind of bravado she's wrapped herself in."

Hearing my words, the protagonist grimaced.

"Wouldn't Hazuki hate that?"

"You're right. That's why I want you to reach that part of Hazuki through your own strength."

"Through my own strength?"

"That's right. Let me explain the nature of Anchors again."

I tossed away my shortened cigarette and lit another one.

I ignored the look he gave me that practically screamed, How many cigarettes are you going to smoke?

"The most important role of an Anchor is to keep the Bluffer connected to reality. Just like an anchor keeps a ship tied to its harbor."

The protagonist gave a small nod.

"In areas where 『Fictional Invaders』 appear, the boundary between reality and fiction becomes blurred. It's said to be caused by 『Fictional Material』, but we don't know the details. That's also why we Bluffers can manifest Fantasy Armaments. And if a Bluffer keeps using Fantasy Armaments for too long, it draws their mind toward fiction. Once a Bluffer leaves reality behind like that, their mind collapses through a phenomenon called 『Flyout』."

For just a moment, the image of a blood-covered corpse flashed through my mind.

I inhaled more smoke, as though trying to erase it. My thoughts grew hazy, and my mood settled.

"An Anchor can stop that. You could say that you're a fixed point of reality. An anchor that holds a Bluffer traveling along the boundary between fiction and reality in place."

In a world where the boundary between reality and fiction had become blurred, Anchors were beings firmly rooted in reality more than anything else.

That's why they don't go insane even when exposed to 『Fictional Material』.

Their logic is fundamentally different from that of Bluffers.

"I heard that during training, but what does any of that have to do with reaching Hazuki's core?"

"Ah, right. Sorry. I don't know how much you already knew, so I explained everything from the beginning. To cut to the point, when an Anchor touches a Bluffer's head, they can see the Bluffer's past. In most cases, it's a past that holds great significance to them."

"Really!?"

It's a little-known fact. Perhaps because simply touching a girl around that age on the head is already quite a high hurdle.

"When an Anchor heals a Bluffer's wounds, they're essentially restoring her to her original state because of their nature as a fixed point of reality. During treatment, you generally touch the injured area to heal it, right? If you touch her head, you'll see the origin point of her memories—in other words, the experience that led to her manifesting a Fantasy Armament. Most likely, it will be a memory of great importance to her. Hazuki is the same."

In game terms, it's the affection level 4 event. A story you can only see after becoming quite close to her.

Though depending on the character, some of that information is revealed during the main story.

"You're pretty knowledgeable. I don't think even the government people knew that much."

"Of course they didn't."

To escape his puzzled expression, which practically asked how I knew so much, I let my gaze wander into the air. I could faintly see the smoke I had exhaled.

Seeing me like that, he stepped a little closer.

"Let me try touching your head."

"How fucking bold of you to casually try touching a girl's head. Want me to kill you?"

"Isn't that a complete contradiction!?"

Smack.

I slapped his hand away and warned him, making him indignant.

"See? Girls don't like having their heads touched, right? I think Hazuki would hate it too. Do you even understand that? Raika, you can be pretty tactless sometimes."

I just got lectured by some brat... I'm pissed off. And the fact that he was completely right only made me even more pissed off.

Fwoosh.

I blew a cloud of smoke straight into his face. He glared at me while coughing violently.

"That stinks! Cigarette smoke stinks!"

"Idiot. That's exactly why you need to get closer to Hazuki, isn't it? So, when are you going to make her completely head-over-heels for you?"

"We haven't even been talking for a month yet... What exactly are you expecting?"

I guess he had a point. I thought about it for a moment.

I tapped the cigarette against the edge of the ashtray several times, knocking off the ash.

"Come to think of it, have you decided on your second self-defense weapon yet?"

Anchors couldn't fight 『Fictional Invasion』 to the same extent as Bluffers, but they could still resist it.

Even without using the risky and difficult technique known as 『Bluffer Wearing』, they had some resistance to the Material, enough to fight back against 『Fictional Invasion』.

Because of that, it was standard practice for them to carry weapons issued by the government so they could fight when necessary.

Even if it was only for self-defense, as long as they could buy enough time for a Bluffer to arrive, that was sufficient.

"I was given a sword for now, but honestly, I don't really understand it. Should I carry a gun like you, Raika?"

"Don't. Live ammunition is useless."

An Anchor couldn't use the power of fiction on their own. Because of that, even if they swung an ordinary weapon around in their natural state, it would simply be stopped by 『Fictional Material』.

The reason my bullets worked was because I poured power into every single shot.

"A sword. Go with a sword. It's easy to use, lets you resist to a reasonable degree, and it'll also give you practice for when you use 『Bluffer Wearing』."

"Uh..."

He gave me a puzzled look as I suddenly began rattling all that off.

"And since you're going to use a sword anyway, there's a perfect person to teach you, isn't there?"

"No way..."

He finally seemed to realize where I was going with this.

"Try talking to Hazuki under the pretext of having her teach you swordsmanship. Two birds with one stone."

He sighed in exasperation before asking:

"You're really cunning, you know. Just how old are you?"

"I'm a fresh sixteen. A lovely high school girl, in the prime of her youth."

I raised the corner of my mouth and smiled.

His gaze, practically screaming "That's definitely a lie," stabbed straight into my face.

《TIPS》The mortality rate of Bluffers who experience 『Flyout』 is 99%.

In most cases, once driven insane, they take their own lives with their Fantasy Armaments.

Dressed in an unfamiliar keikogi and protective gear, with a shinai in my hands, I stood before a genuine kendo girl.

"──Shota. You said you wanted me to train you with everything I have. Are you taking those words back?"

"No, I wasn't lying... But, Hazuki, aren't you taking this a little too seriously?"

Honestly, I was a little scared. I was the one who had asked her to train me, but I was already starting to regret it.

Hazuki's eyes were always dignified and cool, but today she'd gone beyond cool and become downright frightening. I could see flames burning in her eyes, and an aura seemed to radiate from her entire body.

"Of course! The Way of the Sword cannot be mastered in a single day. Through tireless training, you shall one day reach the level of a Sword Saint, Shota!"

"Ah, I didn't mean anything that intense. Just enough to protect myself."

"──Too soft!"

CRACK!

The shinai slammed into the ground with a tremendous bang. I flinched and instinctively recoiled.

"How could anyone master the sword with such a half-hearted attitude!? There is no such thing as merely learning enough to protect yourself. Once you take up a sword, is it not the way of a true Yamato man to fight until the enemy is destroyed!?"

Those values are seriously out of step with the times...!

After going that far, she finally seemed to notice just how terrified I was.

Hazuki lowered her tone slightly.

"No, forgive me. I do not intend to force you. However, if you intend to cross swords with 『Fictional Invasion』, then anything less than complete resolve will only get you killed. If that is the case, you would be better off hiding behind us."

Her words were calm and serious now, completely different from her feverish enthusiasm a moment ago. I could tell she was genuinely worried about me, and a response naturally slipped from my lips.

"No, maybe I was the one taking this too lightly. You're right. If I swing a sword around assuming everyone else will take care of the enemies, I'll only get in the way. You and the others have been risking your lives, so I guess you're the ones who understand this better than anyone, right?"

"...Hmph. So long as you understand."

Despite her blunt words, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly. I was starting to get a sense of what kind of person she really was.

"Then it's decided. We begin practical training immediately. Take up your sword. Put on your armor. Steel yourself."

"What!? Aren't we supposed to start with something like teaching me how to hold a shinai!? No, wait, this is scary, this is really scary!"

Hazuki charged at me with her shinai raised high overhead, and I let out a pathetic scream.

《TIPS》Kendo prodigy Hazuki Taito won second place in the team division of the national kendo tournament when she was in middle school.

"Haa... haa..."

Several dozen minutes later, I was sprawled on the ground, gasping for breath.

Meanwhile, Hazuki remained standing tall and composed, wiping the sweat from her face with a towel.

I caught a brief glimpse of her black hair clinging to the nape of her sweaty neck.

"Shota. Drink some water. You'll become dehydrated at this rate. And here, a towel."

"Thanks... At least you aren't saying something like drinking water is just being weak."

"I would not say something so unscientific."

She certainly looked like the type who'd be fond of the whole "grit your teeth and endure it" philosophy.

"Still, Shota, you might actually have a knack for this. Are you naturally athletic?"

"Well, I guess I'm fairly good at reading people's movements... Though even when I know what's going to happen, my body can't always keep up."

"I see... Come to think of it, you said during your introduction that you could tell what other people were feeling."

"Well, it's not exactly a skill I can be proud of."

I had never felt like it had been particularly useful in my life. At most, it had made me better at reading the room.

"But something like this wouldn't help me fight 『Fictional Invasion』, right? They're not even human."

I muttered that with a self-deprecating smile, and Hazuki rested a hand against her chin.

"...No. It might actually be quite useful. 『Fictional Invasion』 can be surprisingly human in some ways."

"Human?"

That was certainly a strange way to describe monsters.

Hearing my question, Hazuki sat down beside me, as if warning me that this was going to be a long explanation.

"You said you were brought here before you could even receive proper training. How much do you know about 『Fictional Invasion』?"

"Huh? ...That they're monsters trying to exterminate humanity, and that they're covered in some kind of poisonous substance?"

"That's all...? No... perhaps it's better that you know only that much."

She muttered those ominous words, fell silent for a moment, and then continued.

"They were born from human lies. 『Fiction』 is, in other words, all the lies humanity has accumulated over the ages. Our negative history."

"Negative history..."

Her words carried a tremendous weight.

"In a sense, it is humanity's collective fault. Humanity kept lying and built civilization upon those lies, and now we are being cornered by the very lies we created. It is almost too fitting a story, as though it were meant to be a lesson."

It was the first time I'd ever heard this. But when I connected it to everything else I'd been told, I could somehow start to see the bigger picture.

"I remember you saying that Bluffers can manifest the power of their Fantasy Armaments because the boundary between reality and fiction has become blurred. Does that mean 『Fictional Invasion』 and Bluffers are using the same power?"

"Exactly. You asked Raika about that, didn't you? ...She hid the unpleasant parts from you. What a softhearted fool."

Hazuki's displeased expression contained a mixture of disgust and something else I couldn't quite identify.

"I hate lies, so I will tell you the truth. A kind lie is still a lie. Bluffers are not heroes of justice. We are nothing more than hounds sent to clean up humanity's mess."

She spat out those words as though mocking herself, then turned her face away.

"...Hazuki, you're a serious person, aren't you?"

"──How did you arrive at that conclusion from what I just said?"

She turned toward me, her eyes as sharp as a watchdog's.

"Because you're seriously and earnestly thinking about something that can't be helped."

"...What an absurd delusion. You should learn from Mana and her rational way of thinking."

"I can't. I'm not a genius, after all."

For some reason, Hazuki looked surprised when she heard that. Then she abruptly turned her face away again.

"No, you're right. You cannot become someone else. Forgive me."

"You don't need to apologize for something like that."

I hadn't meant anything so serious by it. That was what I was trying to say, but Hazuki still wore a strangely solemn expression.

Ah... So this must be the danger Raika was talking about when she described Hazuki.

The weakness of a person who was far too earnest. Raika had spoken about it in that same detached manner.

"People like Hazuki, the overly serious ones, are destined to get the short end of the stick. That's simply the way this world works. That's why a liar like me has to do what I can, so people like her can keep walking the straight path."

Raika's face when she said that had looked somehow sad.

While I was lost in that memory, Hazuki, who had been sitting beside me, had somehow gotten to her feet and picked up her shinai.

"I have bored you with a pointless story. There is no room for distracting thoughts on the Way of the Sword. One should focus solely on striking down the enemy before them. So you may forget everything I just told you."

"There's no way I can forget it. You showed me a part of yourself."

"...Just take your stance. I have no need for any more unnecessary words."

She spoke curtly and raised her shinai.