Chapter 199: Read as "Hero", Written as "A Man"

"Getting carried away over trivial matters, throwing important things aside, and torturing yourself like a prisoner...."

The moment Miyahito's voice rang out with resounding clarity, riding the impassioned intro, the fragmented memories of a past he thought he had buried shattered into pieces, constantly surfacing within the high walls Ishigami Yu had built around his heart.

They constantly surfaced before the eyes of this coward who had already lost the courage to meet anyone's gaze.

'You're the trash here!'

No, no, no, no... That's wrong, wrong, wrong.

'So gross! Ogino-san is so pitiful....'

Something about this is wrong!

Ishigami silently raised both hands, clutching his head, and lowered it without a sound... letting the long hair over his forehead cover his eyes.

At this moment, Miyahito noticed Ishigami's unusual state.

However, just as he was about to stop and ask Ishigami what was wrong, he noticed Miyuki shaking his head at him.

'Thank you for your trouble, but please keep singing, Miyahito.'

Understanding the meaning in Miyuki's gaze, and knowing at least a little about Ishigami's past experiences, Miyahito slowly let out a breath.

And then.

"A man should become strong for someone else's sake!"

The next moment, Miyahito's soaring, uplifting voice pierced deeply into Ishigami's heart, which was shrouded in gloomy memories, like a sharp sword.

"Grit your teeth and see it through to the end."

"It's okay to fall down, just stand back up again."

"As long as you can do that, you're a hero!"

Ununderstood, untrusted.

During those dark days, Ishigami had countless times wondered why, when he had clearly done it to protect the girl he liked, to protect her from being toyed with and having her dignity trampled by a piece of trash.

Yet, in the end, the very first person to deal him a harsh blow of reality was the very girl he had risked everything to protect.

Why was that?

"A man should become strong for someone else's sake."

His vision gradually began to blur. Amidst the singing, Ishigami silently lifted his head, using his bangs to hide his slightly reddened eye sockets.

During that dark time of his suspension at home, he had also wanted to write down the entire truth of the facts in his 'letter of apology'.

But the pen tip he raised with gritted teeth and all his might could not write a single character on the crumpled manuscript paper.

Even if his heart was filled with rage at the injustice... Even if his mind was filled with a desire to take revenge on everything... Even so!

Even so, even so, Ishigami had never regretted it.

'Once, I protected you.'

"It's fine to fall down, just stand back up. As long as you can do that, you're a hero."

The song came to an end.

Neither Miyahito nor Miyuki spoke. They just silently watched Ishigami, whose eyes were hidden by his long hair, and waited for him.

At this moment, hearing the singing, Kei curiously poked her little head out. Seeing the silent scene in the living room, she turned back around in confusion, blinked her eyes, and asked Utaha, who was sitting on the engawa steps beside her.

"Utaha-nee, what's wrong with my brother and the others? They feel a bit weird."

Glancing at the three silent boys in the living room, Utaha smiled and shook her head, signaling Kei not to disturb them.

"Let the boys have a good talk, Kei."

"Ah, oh... I understand."

A short while passed.

"Sorry, I got a bit lost in the music." Snapping out of his memories, Ishigami's first reaction was to apologize to Miyuki and Miyahito, who had been quietly keeping him company.

Hearing Ishigami's apology, both Miyahito and Miyuki waved their hands nonchalantly, indicating it was no big deal.

"How are you?" Miyuki raised his hand, placing his palm gently on Ishigami's shoulder. His expression was somewhat serious, and his tone carried a hint of unconcealed concern. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Yeah, much better. Thank you for your concern, President."

For the first time, Ishigami showed a shy smile in front of Miyuki. After rubbing the back of his head in slight embarrassment, he turned to look at Miyahito, his tone serious and filled with emotion.

"Miyani-sensei, this song is really good."

"Thank you?" Miyahito tilted his head, giving a blank, innocent-sounding rhetorical question.

This goofy response made Ishigami unavoidably show an awkward, flustered expression.

Amused by Ishigami's reaction, Miyahito laughed heartily without a shred of guilt.

Raising his hand, he forcefully patted Ishigami's broad shoulders (Miyahito: Yo, you're surprisingly well-built, kid), slung an arm around Ishigami's neck, and spoke like a big brother.

"So? Do you like it?"

"Yeah, I really like it."

Not quite knowing how to handle Miyahito's demeanor, Ishigami honestly nodded in response.

"Um... Miyahito, what's the name of this song?"

"The name, huh."

Pausing for a moment, Miyahito thought about it and said with a somewhat emotional tone.

"'Hero'."

"Eh? 'Hero'?"

Repeating Miyahito's words in a small voice with a slightly surprised expression, Ishigami seemed to understand something. He let out a heavy sigh of relief, turned, and smiled at Miyahito.

"It's a great name. 'Hero'."

"I told you so." Miyahito proudly lifted his chin. "Even if misunderstood, a 'Hero' will never change."

Because, that is what a hero is.

Read as "Hero", written as "A Man".

"....Um, Miyahito-kun, do you know about my... never mind."

Originally, Ishigami wanted to ask Miyahito if he knew about his situation.

But on second thought.

What if he did know? What if he didn't?

The meaning of that answer had actually vanished the moment he agreed to come to the President's birthday party today—or rather, the moment he became friends with Miyahito that day.

"Well then." Mimicking Miyahito's gesture, Ishigami slung his arm over Miyahito's shoulder, leaned in with a mischievous grin, and whispered into his ear.

"When is the single album coming out? Get me a collector's edition!"

"Hoh?" After a brief half-second of surprise, Miyahito mimicked Ishigami's posture, putting on the face of a cunning merchant, and said.

"You've got quite the appetite, kid? A collector's edition? No can do. The most I can give you is a deluxe edition."

"Tch... We're friends now, aren't we? Can't you just hook me up with a collector's edition?"

"Nonono, that's where you're wrong, Ishigami-kun. Everything comes with a price."

"...I know some gossip about the President. Want to hear it?"

"Oh? Now that's interesting. Deal!"

Watching the two of them strike a deal—with one of them literally selling his gossip to the other—Miyuki looked at his two juniors, who had suddenly turned into total goofballs, with a mix of amusement and helplessness.

"You two, how did this suddenly become about me? Besides, what gossip do I even have?"

Hearing this, Miyahito and Ishigami paused, then turned to look at each other in perfect sync before saying in unison:

"Zero self-awareness."

"Absolutely zero self-awareness."