Chapter 10 It's You
It had been a while, but Cosplay-san still looked as bizarre as ever—red clothes, a huge headscarf, and a completely expressionless face…
Truly a paragon of dedication in the industry. Even in this scorching heat, he persistently maintained his cosplay, with no intention whatsoever of removing the massive headscarf.
Just how obsessed is this guy with cosplay?!
However, Cosplay-san clearly couldn't hear Hikigaya's inner thoughts. He gave Hikigaya a once-over, then arbitrarily showed a satisfied expression.
He casually gave such a gentlemanly expression to a complete stranger! Could this guy be that Hentai-san!?
Thinking back on how he'd just appeared out of nowhere like a ghost, Hikigaya felt it was very possible. With skills like that, it'd be no surprise he wasn't noticed.
"You want to see them? Very well. It's a good opportunity."
The voice entered his ears, but unexpectedly, it sounded somewhat aged.
Cosplay-san's face returned to its blank, unreadable state. Suddenly, he stretched out his hand and grabbed Hikigaya.
In the next moment, Hikigaya was hit by a strong gust of wind, so powerful he instinctively closed his eyes.
Then he felt something being shoved into his arms—something that felt incredibly familiar.
Opening his eyes, Hikigaya found himself being held in Cosplay-san's grasp. And in his arms, a certain ceramic jar shone brightly.
Holy crap, it is you!
But that wasn't even the most shocking part—he was flying!
Oh no, actually, it was Cosplay-san who was flying—and carrying him along!
Though calling it "flying" wasn't entirely accurate. It was more like leaping incredibly high and far, moving from branch to branch of varying thickness, which felt like flying.
Idiot! Now is not the time for that kind of clarification! How could a person possibly jump this high?! Did I just go through a second transmigration or something!?
As he was thinking that, Cosplay-san came to a stop. Pointing into the distance below, he said, "There. Can you see them?"
Hikigaya looked in that direction—and sure enough, it was those two boys.
They were fighting, punches and kicks flying. Clearly, they had martial arts training; their fight looked almost beautiful—though it was mostly one-sided, with one guy taking the beating.
Wait a sec, that spot looks pretty far away—how can I see so clearly?
"Can you see clearly?" Cosplay-san asked again.
At that moment, Hikigaya felt this person—who didn't seem human—was shrouded in mystery. His heart, which had been calm ever since he'd settled into this world after the initial chaos of transmigration, suddenly wavered once more.
This wasn't just a matter of "similar world"—the whole world felt off.
What the hell was that just now? Legendary lightness skill? A wizard's spell?
Either way, neither of those belonged in a normal world.
And those two boys weren't normal either. Even if they were trained in martial arts, wasn't that way too over-the-top? This wasn't an action movie!
"Keep watching," Cosplay-san commanded.
That tone—definitely a command.
The problem was, Hikigaya didn't dare disobey...
He widened his eyes and looked. At first, it just seemed like two people brawling, but soon, he realized something was off.
Their movements were still lightning-fast, and they were quite far away—under normal circumstances, he shouldn't be able to see more than some arm flailing or kicking.
But Hikigaya could see it. He clearly saw the boy in the shirt throw a punch at the one in a suit—only to be grabbed and flipped to the ground.
The boy in the shirt landed on his back, but immediately pushed off the ground with both hands and bounced back up.
Hikigaya clicked his tongue. Wait—my eyesight is this good? Holy crap, what kind of super vision is this?
Back in his original world, Hikigaya had normal eyesight, full of DHA. Now it seemed he'd just discovered another new benefit.
Though right on cue, Cosplay-san muttered slowly, "As expected, only you outsiders can use it. But… you've got more guts than that girl."
What the hell?! Did this guy secretly do something to me?
Or maybe this world's genre isn't fantasy—but a hardcore bio-engineered horror setting?
Cosplay-san didn't seem to care about Hikigaya's shifting expression. At some point, he had already taken the ceramic jar into his own hands.
"This might not be the most appropriate way... but it's the only way," he said, looking a bit conflicted. But soon, he wore a resolute expression.
With a pained look on his face, he handed the jar back to Hikigaya.
"Keep this safe," he said. "Carry it with you at all times. Until the moment comes, train yourself well. Learning some martial arts like those young men wouldn't be a bad idea."
"Uncle, who are you? Can you at least explain things to me?" Hikigaya asked as he took the jar, smiling bitterly.
Other people get gifted legendary secret scrolls, or a wise old mentor in their pocket—that's a totally broken setup, right? So why is his big gift just this weird jar?
And whoever arranged his transmigration—seriously? Not even a proper starter pack? Just this jar? Really?
"No. If I explained, you'd probably run away," Cosplay-san rejected Hikigaya's request without hesitation. "But you can call me Seth."
"Uncle Seth..."
"It's Seth," he interrupted, immediately correcting him.
Being cut off like that made Hikigaya feel this guy was seriously inflexible.
And this so-called non-explanation explanation just made everything more suspicious... Crap, what kind of nonsense has my pure and environmentally friendly self gotten dragged into!?
Could it be… Hikigaya Hachiman, who appears to be a regular student, is actually the heir to some secret mega-corporation and is now being hunted for assassination? And Uncle Seth was sent to protect him?
Then next, Uncle Seth should say, "Today I got you a piece of land," right?
Okay yeah, even he could tell that line of thought had gone completely off the rails...
"Let me be clear: I don't know your name, I wasn't sent by anyone to protect you, and I definitely didn't buy you any land," Seth suddenly said.
Hikigaya looked over, surprised. Seth's expression looked as if he'd just eaten dog poop—his facial muscles twitching all over.
Huh? Did I… actually say that stuff out loud just now?
If so, he felt kind of embarrassed.
Just as he was thinking that, he felt a sudden tightening around his neck—something strong grabbed the back of his collar.
The scenery around him quickly blurred backward—Seth had picked him up again, and once more, they were flying through the air.
When they landed, Hikigaya found himself back at the entrance to the candy store. Seth had already disappeared.
The drinks and books he'd bought earlier had long since fallen somewhere in the park. Only the ceramic jar remained, quietly resting at his feet.
At this point, Hikigaya didn't dare go back to the action movie scene. With no other choice, he picked up the jar and walked home.
Today... really was a day I shouldn't have gone outside...