Crossover PS 211 (Patreon)

Gen Chisei looked toward Minoru. His gaze rested on his face for a few seconds before he spoke, "Have you been staying with her these past few days?"

"Yes."

"She has started speaking. She... didn't speak before but now she can."

"I don't know who you are. I won't ask what kind of person you are or what abilities you have. I only have one question for you."

"All these years, I've been pondering a question. What is protection?"

"I thought locking her in that white room was protection, not letting her speak was protection, and not letting her contact the outside world was protection."

"But you brought her out, let her speak, and let her stand here in the wind. What I couldn't do, you did."

"So I want to ask you..."

"If one day she no longer needs you, will you still stand by her side?"

Minoru turned his head to glance at Erii. She was looking up at him with a quiet sense of trust.

Minoru withdrew his gaze and looked at Gen Chisei. "You've asked the wrong question."

Gen Chisei frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

"It's not that 'she no longer needs me'. It's that 'she never needed me.'"

Gen Chisei was stunned.

"She doesn't need me to survive. She doesn't need me to make decisions for her. She doesn't need me to tell her what is right and what is wrong."

"She is an independent individual with her own thoughts. She has just been locked away for too long and forgot that she could leave on her own."

"What I'm doing isn't walking for her, it's telling her where the path is."

Gen Chisei opened his mouth. For a moment, he didn't know what to say. These words were like a needle, piercing the deepest knot in his heart.

Perhaps because Tachibana Masamune had disappeared, Gen Chisei had taken all the blame upon himself.

When he made all the decisions for her, he told himself it was for her own good. He had never asked her what she wanted, never thought about what kind of person she was.

Minoru continued, "There's a concept in the psychological theory of attachment. It's called a 'Secure Base.' From a young age, a person needs to gain a sense of security from their parents—to be seen, responded to, and accepted."

"That way, when they grow up, they have the ability to explore the world, because they know that no matter how far they go, there is always a place to return to. But under your influence, Erii didn't have that."

Gen Chisei's fingers tightened slightly.

"When she was a child, no one saw her, no one told her that she could do it. So she didn't dare to try. What I'm doing isn't being that base for her, it's telling her that she can build one herself."

Gen Chisei thought back to those years when he thought Erii had grown accustomed to it, thought she had accepted it.

But looking at it now, it was resignation to fate. It wasn't that she didn't want to come out, it was that no one had ever told her where the door was.

"So you ask me, if she no longer needs me, will I still stand by her side?" Minoru looked at him, his gaze calm.

"My answer is..."

"If one day she no longer needs me, it means she has found her own path. I won't stand by her side, I will stand behind her."

Gen Chisei's pupils contracted slightly.

"She will be able to see me when she looks back. She can return when she is tired. When she needs me, I will still be there."

Erii's eyes were a bit red, but the corners of her lips were curved upward.

"Minoru, you asked me before if I wanted to go to school. I didn't answer then because I didn't know if I could do it."

"Now I know, I can."

Gen Chisei looked into Erii's bright eyes. He suddenly remembered many years ago, when she was still a child, she used to look at him like that too. Back then, she hadn't been locked up yet and could still laugh and run.

He had lost all of that but another person had helped her find it again.

After a long silence, Gen Chisei spoke, his voice trembling slightly, "Do you know? I spent so many years trying everything I could to make her better. I hired the best doctorsand built the safest room. But what I couldn't do, you did."

"It's not just because you have greater power than I do, but also because you understand her better than I do. Thank you."

"Can you give me your contact information?"

Gen Chisei said frankly, "I know I can't find you. When you don't want to be found, one can't even touch a hair on your head even after searching all over Tokyo. I've already experienced that these past few days."

"So I won't search anymore. If you're willing to give it, I'll keep it. If you're not..."

"Okay." Minoru took his phone out of his pocket.

Gen Chisei was stunned for a moment. He thought it would take more persuasion and that this man would at least hesitate for a bit. But Minoru had already handed over the QR code.

Gen Chisei pulled out his phone and scanned it, a name popping up on the screen: Minoru.

He put his phone away and looked up. "In a few days, I have something to give you. Consider it a surprise."

Minoru raised an eyebrow. "What surprise?"

Gen Chisei smiled. "It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you now. You'll know when the time comes."

Minoru nodded, not pressing further.

His gaze moved from Gen Chisei's face to the other side of the street. A black van had been staying there for a while.

The windows were tinted dark, making it impossible to see inside. But Minoru could feel that there were eyes inside, more than one pair.

He withdrew his gaze and looked at Gen Chisei. "The Oni Clan has been very active lately."

Gen Chisei nodded. "You noticed."

Minoru said, "They've likely been watching you for several days."

"Yes." Gen Chisei sighed, pressing his fingers to his temples. "That's also one of the reasons I've been so overwhelmed lately. Erii was missing, and the Oni Clan has been constantly making moves. I don't know what they're planning but it should be soon. Their movements have been getting more and more obvious lately."

Minoru thought for a moment and continued, "In the Oni Clan, there might be someone you want to see."

Gen Chisei was stunned. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, some people you think are no longer around might still be there. You just don't know it."

Gen Chisei's expression changed instantly. "You mean..."

Minoru didn't answer, just looking at him.

Gen Chisei's expression flickered, as if he were digesting news that was far too heavy.

"I understand... thank you."

He believed Minoru. This man was able to restore his sister to this extent. Whatever he said, Gen Chisei believed.

"If that person is still alive, then I truly have nothing left that I can't let go of."

Gen Chisei looked at Minoru. "Did you know? I've always wanted to go to France, to Montalivet Beach."

"The sunlight on the beach there is particularly beautiful. I've seen it on the computer, I've always wanted to go, but I never made it."

The corners of Minoru's lips curled up slightly. "To help people apply sunscreen at that famous nude beach?"

Gen Chisei was stunned for a moment, then he laughed out loud.

"How did you know?"

"Just a guess." Minoru laughed too. "You look like that kind of person."

Erii blinked. "Brother wants to help people apply sunscreen?"

Gen Chisei laughed even harder. "No, I just want to sunbathe there. To wake up every day, look at the sea and feel the breeze, without endless meetings."

"Just to be an ordinary person who doesn't have to worry about anything."

Listening to Gen Chisei speak like this,

Minoru seemed to have a vague idea of what Gen Chisei was going to give him.

Erii called out, "Brother."

Gen Chisei looked at her.

"If you go to France, will you miss me?"

Gen Chisei froze. Then he smiled, his eyes turning a bit red.

"I will. Every single day."

Erii smiled as well. "Then you must remember to send me photos."

"Okay." Gen Chisei's voice was a bit hoarse. "I'll send them every day."

Erii nodded, then looked at Minoru. "Minoru, we should go."

Minoru checked the time, it was indeed getting late.

He looked at Gen Chisei. "Take care."

Gen Chisei nodded, his gaze falling on Erii. He looked at her for a long time, as if trying to carve her image into his mind.

"Erii."

"Hmm?"

"Whenever you want to come back in the future, come back anytime. And if you don't want to come back, that's okay too."

Erii looked at him. "Brother, thank you."

Gen Chisei was stunned.

He wanted to ask what she was thanking him for.

For locking her up? For making her afraid to speak? For letting her become like that?

Erii said, "Thank you for always looking for me. Thank you for not giving up."

Gen Chisei's eyes grew hot and he nodded.