Chapter 55: Childhood Girlfriend
The Moonlit Sword sliced through the night air, closing the distance, then paused at the edge of Jun’s ruined window.
Behind him, the remaining three swords were still chasing Kai, Goro and Rei.
Before Haruto could even fully dismount his sword, Jun was already there. His friend was a complete mess. Tears streamed down Jun’s face, mixing with the grime and dust that now coated his room. He launched himself at Haruto, clinging onto him like a desperate lifeline, his body trembling uncontrollably.
"Haruto! Oh my God, Haruto!" Jun’s voice was a frantic, high-pitched wail, filled with a raw mix of terror and disbelief. "You... you came! And... and those swords! You have powers! Real powers! Like... like in the anime! It’s all real! Superpowers exist! I knew it! I just knew it!"
Haruto stiffened as Jun’s scream tore through the night. In an instant, he was at his friend’s side, hands gripping Jun’s trembling shoulders, "Hey—hey! You okay? What happened here!"
Jun was far too overwrought to listen. He pulled back slightly, still clutching Haruto’s arm, his eyes wide and bloodshot, but now alight with a frantic excitement that bordered on manic. "Those swords! Are those your power? Is that what you can do? Summon glowing swords from the moonlight?"
Haruto hesitated, glancing at the Moonlight Sword he was still standing on, and the other three still engaged in skirmishes afar. "Yeah," he admitted, a slight edge of weariness in his voice. "Something like that."
"Amazing!" Jun practically shrieked, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Then mine is... is a shield! A totally unbreakable energy shield! I just... I just wished for it, and it came out! A green one! It can hold them off! I think... I think it can hold those guys off for like, ten minutes!"
Jun gestured wildly at the shimmering green dome that still encased them, vibrating faintly with the strain of resisting the continued attacks from the three figures outside. His voice was breathless, almost giddy with the sheer wonder of it all.
Haruto just grunted in response, a noncommittal sound that did little to acknowledge Jun’s excited claims. His gaze, however, was no longer fixed on his friend. It had drifted past Jun, coming to rest on the white-haired girl who was still partially slumped against the far wall, her delicate features pale, her pure white hair fanned out around her like a halo.
She was slowly pushing herself upright, her pale white eyes, still half-lidded and distant, now fixed on the glowing green shield around them, a faint flicker of comprehension passing through their ethereal depths.