"Wait, Nakano-kun!"
In Katsura Kotonoha's room, the girl who had been sleeping for a long time suddenly sat up, calling Nakano Yu, reaching out her hand, but grasping only emptiness.
Seeing her familiar room, Katsura Kotonoha was stunned.
She… had returned.
But where was Nakano Yu?!
In a panic, Katsura Kotonoha scanned the room with her eyes and finally saw the young man sitting on a chair beside the bed, fast asleep.
Seeing him, Katsura Kotonoha wanted to reach out and touch him, but stopped, afraid of causing him any trouble.
"Kotoha!"
At that moment, a sudden exclamation came from the door.
Katsura Kotonoha turned, and before she could see who it was, a body rushed toward her and hugged her tightly.
"Kotoha! Kotoha, you… you're finally okay!"
Holding Katsura Kotonoha tightly, Katsura Manami's voice was full of sobs and slight hoarseness.
Not wanting to disturb Nakano Yu, she had anxiously waited alone in the living room, crying from worry.
Hearing the commotion, Katsura Manami immediately ran over, and when she saw that Katsura Kotonoha was awake, the joy in her heart drove away all darkness, and the tears that fell then were tears of relief.
"Mo-mother…"
Feeling her mother's emotional hug, Katsura Kotonoha was stunned.
Her mother had rarely shown her such concern.
Since childhood, Katsura Kotonoha had always perceived her mother as a strict and strong woman, who rarely hugged so tightly, let alone cried in front of her.
Perhaps infected by Katsura Manami's emotions, Katsura Kotonoha also reached out and gently hugged her mother, and tears fell at that moment.
After a long time, mother and daughter finally parted.
Looking at the exhausted Katsura Kotonoha, Katsura Manami felt a sharp pain in her heart, but when she noticed Nakano Yu still sleeping nearby, she asked, puzzled:
"He didn't come back with you, Kotoha, did he?"
Hearing her mother's question, Katsura Kotonoha's expression became slightly lonely as she looked at the sleeping young man and said:
"Nakano-kun saved me, but he still has some things he needs to take care of… because of me…"
Hearing this, Katsura Manami fell silent, her gaze toward Nakano Yu becoming complex.
To help just one classmate, he was willing to expose himself to danger?
If she had met someone like Nakano Yu in her youth, perhaps she would never have divorced.
"Hey, Kotoha."
Thinking about that, Katsura Manami suddenly called Katsura Kotonoha.
Katsura Kotonoha turned confusedly, about to ask her mother what was wrong, but the next words from Katsura Manami made her blush:
"That child… he's someone you can trust yourself with."
As Katsura Manami's words fell, Katsura Kotonoha's cheeks reddened like the evening sun at the beginning of summer, beginning to burn.
She started stammering, explaining her relationship with Nakano Yu, but her voice grew quieter as she spoke:
"Mo-mother! What, what are you saying? I, I and Nakano-kun… we're obviously still just friends…"
"Hm~ Friends and lovers differ by only one word, Kotoha.
You must make use of such a good man.
If other girls snatch him away, you'll cry too late."
Seeing her daughter's expression, Katsura Manami understood her small thoughts.
After that, she waved her hand and prepared to go down the stairs:
"I'll go downstairs and make you some porridge, Kotoha."
"Think carefully."
"Mm…"
Burying her head in the blanket, Katsura Kotonoha's response was as quiet as the buzzing of a mosquito.
At that moment, Nakano Yu, of course, didn't know that Katsura mother and daughter had already turned their attention toward him.
The young man was currently standing in the Monkey Train carriage, watching the doll-like passengers rise under control and the monkeys hanging from the train ceiling, with a look of complete indifference on his face.
"Seriously, you're really a strange thing."
"You're neither a demon nor a spirit."
"I really wonder why you even exist in this world."
Stomping his foot on the floor, Nakano Yu ignored the aggressive monkeys and passengers, muttering to himself while looking down.
It looked like he was talking to himself, but also as if he was speaking to the Monkey Train beneath his feet.
"Wuwuwawawa!!!"
At that moment, the Monkey Train suddenly shook violently, and the lead monkey growled loudly.
As if receiving an order, all the monkeys rushed toward Nakano Yu.
The passengers, like walking corpses, also ran toward the young man under the control of the Monkey Train.
But in Nakano Yu's eyes, all of this was nothing more than ordinary beans.
Shrugging, the Golden Sword Joyeuse appeared.
As before, Nakano Yu simply held the sword and swung it forward, and the golden sword cuts ruthlessly sliced through the carriage.
The advancing horde of monkeys and passengers immediately halted.
"Klang."
Starting with the first monkey, all the monkeys and passengers received a thin bloody line across their bodies.
That line grew clearer, and the upper and lower parts of their bodies shifted, then separated, and fell heavily into the carriage.
Watching this, Nakano Yu felt somewhat bored.
Those monkeys and passengers were just slightly stronger than ordinary humans.
Against him, it was a matter of one sword swing, without any effort.
"If that's all you have, then get ready to disappear."
Nakano Yu watched as the remains of flesh and blood on the floor turned into black water and merged with the Monkey Train.
As he spoke, a terrifying pressure emanated from his body.
He had already had enough fun; after all, if he didn't return home soon, he wouldn't get to eat Ninoin's dinner.
However, just as Nakano Yu was about to deliver the final blow to the Monkey Train, his vision was suddenly enveloped in white light.
When the white light dissipated, Nakano Yu found himself on a railway track.
As he wondered what trick the Monkey Train was pulling now, the buzzing and eerie laughter of the Monkey Train came from a distance:
"Bzz bzz~"
"Hehehe, hehehehe!"
Following the sound, Nakano Yu discovered that in the distance, a massive Monkey Train was charging toward him at full speed.
The monkey head on its forehead was now completely distorted, without a single smile.
Compared to the Monkey Train, Nakano Yu was like an ant, not even as tall as its wheels.
If an ordinary person saw such a giant train rushing toward them, they would probably freeze in fear and collapse to the ground.
But for Nakano Yu, that was not the case!
In his eyes, what's the use of being big?
As for destructive power against a single target, Nakano Yu had never feared anyone, let alone such a ridiculous Monkey Train!
"Bzz bzz!"
The Monkey Train honked, as if mourning Nakano Yu's approaching death, but what it didn't know was that the always-invincible God of War would summon the Boar to crush all obstacles in his path!
Facing the Monkey Train, Nakano Yu raised his hand, and the rift that split the present world and the otherworld appeared before him.
The crimson, gigantic eyes of the Boar lit up, staring at the approaching Monkey Train.
"Oh, bearer of sharp tusks! Strike it down with one blow, trample it and smash it!"
Nakano Yu let out a deep roar, and the rift suddenly expanded.
From it emerged the Boar, tens of meters tall, covered in completely black fur, wrapped in blue flames, and with sharp tusks.
It was one of the Ten Incarnations of the God of War — the Incarnation of Destruction, [Boar]!
Nakano Yu pressed his hand downward, and the Boar rushed out from the rift, carrying an aura of total destruction.
Every step it took had the destructive power to cause a magnitude 5 earthquake in the real world, and it collided forcefully with the Monkey Train.
"Boom!!!"
An explosion erupted in an instant, and fine cracks spread across the front of the Monkey Train, covering its entire body in the blink of an eye.
"Bang!!!"
After a dull impact, the Monkey Train collapsed with a scream, turning into white light and disappearing.
The Boar continued its unstoppable charge into the distance, completely crushing this bizarre dream world!