Yama had recently acquired a must-do activity after school. She would head straight to the arcade, where a certain someone would always be waiting for her. She persistently challenged him, and he would defeat her without mercy.
As time wore on, Yama skills improved continuously. She also noticed that some of her habits were being exploited by the opponent, so Lin victories became more and more difficult—moving from complete dominance at the start to narrow wins with only half a health bar or even critical health remaining.
Yama friends would also come to the arcade to watch, marveling at the sight. As for who these friends were, Lin was quite familiar with them: Kevin, Hua, Immer, Su, Mei... Lin even saw Yama among them. There were others who, though not the same age as Yama, were quite close to her; for instance, her homeroom teacher was Himeko.
These were people Lin knew—they had the same personalities he was familiar with, living out ordinary and common lives in this world without the Honkai. However, Lin did not have deep interactions with them, even those who had passed away in his world. Because this was the world of Yama wish.
He won again. This time, Lin health bar was almost invisible, making one wonder if a slight upward tug of the joystick to jump would result in him falling to his death.
Yama continued to insert coins with a grim face, but Lin didn't select a character. Instead, he kept his hands on the buttons and said in a voice barely audible to those nearby, "Is this enough for you?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Would you rather immerse yourself in a falsehood than move forward?"
Just as she had given up on searching for a way to save humanity and instead only hunted her parallel selves. She wanted to stop, to stay right here, and commit no more mistakes.
"I don't understand what you're saying. Are you preparing to beg for mercy?"
"...I suppose so."
Lin stood up. He didn't start another match but turned and left the area.
"Are you running away!" Yama shouted behind him.
He stopped in his tracks, turned his head, and stared at her coldly.
"It is you who is running away."
...
The night was starry and the moon was bright. Yama walked home alone, the scenes of Lin departure replaying in her mind—that indifferent gaze and those cold words. What did that man mean...
Lin was like a mysterious plug-in that had suddenly inserted itself into her life, saying incomprehensible things. Yet, that unique feeling was something Yama had only ever seen in her own reflection in the mirror. But even so, there was no need to care about those things Lin said.
What did he mean by "drowning in falsehood"? What did he mean by "unwilling to move forward"? She felt she was living very well—friends, teachers, playmates... an ordinary life and ordinary relationships. What more could she want?
How could this be false? Everything she had, everything she was, should all be here. There was no need to move forward; she only needed to stay where she was. Besides, that guy clearly ran away from the fight at the end, yet he still had to leave a tough remark.
Not being able to win was a thorn in Yama side after all; she hadn't realized she had such a strong competitive streak. Her mind was complex as she thought of the man she hadn't yet defeated—his gaze and his silhouette—and then she unknowingly stopped, silently looking up at the sky.
The night sky of Nagazora City was truly full of character. It had the bright lights of a big city, like daytime, yet one could clearly see the starlight behind that curtain of light. She felt... as if something were missing. A sense of loss, as if she had forgotten something very important. What was it...
"It is you who is running away."
"One day, I will prove it to you."
Tap, tap, tap...
Footsteps approached from a distance. Yama stopped, warily watching the gathered shadows in the darkness move into the light of a streetlamp. Perhaps it was because it was so late, but there were very few people on this road; she couldn't see a single person now. The shadow, whose footsteps fell at perfectly identical intervals, finally came under the light and revealed its form.
"You!" Yama recognized the person. Her pupils shrank. He—
He stood under the streetlamp, wearing a pink wig and a little dress, with an expressionless face.
"..."
"..."
"Pervert?"
"No."
Yama felt she couldn't understand this person's logic. Did it mean the crazier someone was, the more powerful they were? Was this some strange setting from an anime?
Lin made a peace sign without expression: "I am Miss Pink Elf."
"...Aside from the color pink, in what way does that fit?"
What exactly was wrong with this unnamed guy's brain? From not paying for the bus to being a stalker, then battling her for days, and finally exposing his cross-dressing fetish after saying a bunch of nonsensical things. The only non-peaceful element in Yama peaceful life had arrived.
"What exactly are you trying to do... no, who exactly are you?"
"Miss Pink Elf."
"...Can you be normal?"
"I am Miss Pink Elf."
"I didn't ask you to emphasize it."
Yama gave him a look of disgust and tried to walk around him to go home. But Lin turned and followed right behind her. After walking a certain distance, Yama pace gradually became a trot, then a fast run. Lin followed without hesitation.
Thus, the chase between the two—one in front, one behind, and one of them being a cross-dressing pervert—continued until they reached Yama doorstep. She stood at the door, catching her breath, and looked unhappily at the fellow in the pink dress and wig not far away.
"Enough! Who are you!" Her gaze was unfriendly. If necessary, she would use force; she didn't believe that just because this guy was good at games, he would be just as good at a real fight.
"Miss Pink..."
"Your name!" Yama didn't want to hear that phrase again; her brain was trembling in resistance. "I am asking for your name!"
"Just call me Yama," Lin said to her calmly.
"Yama, what is your goal? I'm just an ordinary person..."
"Would an ordinary person's reflexes and physical fitness be that strong?" Lin interrupted her. "Don't you think, given your age and identity, many things are very strange?"
"...There are always special people in this world."
"So you think your specialness is entirely a coincidence?" Lin breathing was steady, just like his words. "You're right, you're just an ordinary person—at least you should have been someone not particularly special. But your thinking ability, information collection ability, physical fitness, and appearance... are just like mine; they shouldn't be naturally occurring anomalies."
"...What exactly are you trying to say?"
"I mean you would also look very good in a pink dress." Lin pointed at his own lower half.
"...Bang."
Yama calmly closed the door, shutting the pervert outside.