Chapter 49 Returning Home
Unlike when he came to Italy, Hikigaya's return trip was a one-stop service—directly by ship.
This time, he didn't bother being polite and accepted the ship prepared for him by the Bronze Black Cross.
The conditions were pretty good; the interior was decorated like a hotel, and the cabins were large, suite-style rooms.
Although Cagliari, who had taken a whipping from Poseidon, had changed a lot—so much so that this ship couldn't even dock—Hikigaya wasn't a normal person. He jumped aboard by himself. Since she had accepted the invitation to "come to Japan together," Liliana boarded the ship too and would accompany him back to Japan.
There were some small incidents along the way—for example, not long after leaving Cagliari, they encountered the very ship Hikigaya had taken to get there and ran into a whole crowd of Yomi girls. This proved that Hikigaya was right to sneak off alone back then. Otherwise, at this speed, by the time they got there, not to mention god-slaying, even Cagliari itself might have been long gone…
Normally, a meeting between this group of a hundred or so Yomi martial artist girls and the Italian magic society wouldn't go smoothly, but thanks to Hikigaya's presence, the encounter was absurdly harmonious. The magicians "very reasonably" invited the martial artist girls, led by Yomi boss Kushinada Mikumo, to board the ship.
This was decided immediately by Liliana, who didn't even wait for Hikigaya to say anything to smooth things over.
But once she saw the various Yomi of different shapes and sizes boarding the deck, Liliana clearly slipped into some kind of delusion.
And judging by the way she looked at Kushinada Mikumo's massive chest—disdainful yet sparkling-eyed—her tastes were… quite something…
To snap her out of it, Hikigaya had to give her a karate chop. He finally realized someone around him was even more easily distracted than he was.
"Ah ya…" The dreamy knight held her head in pain and, with great reluctance, cast one last glance at Kushinada Mikumo's fearsome assets. Then, with a face like she'd just seen the Demon King, she muttered, "What depravity…"
Hikigaya began to wonder if he really should try acting like a massive pervert for once—with this dumb literary knight as the target, of course.
The rest of the journey passed uneventfully and peacefully.
The ship sailed directly into Tokyo Bay and arrived at Chiba.
But before that, Hikigaya had already received some interesting news.
"Wow, this really is like a TV drama," Hikigaya said while sitting on the bed, eagerly reading the news brought by Kushinada Mikumo.
The plot was intense—practically a blockbuster action flick.
In short, the current storyline had entered a mystery phase, whereas previously it was more like a Three Kingdoms drama with assassins, cops, and yakuza uncles.
Who would've thought the Seishuin clan played so hardcore?
And it turned out the real head of the family wasn't Ena's dad, but her grandmother. Damn, the women in this family were fierce—the young ones walk around with a blade every day, while the old ones love filming gunfight movies, Fast & Furious-style.
"Aren't you planning to do something?" Kushinada Mikumo asked. "Isn't Yukinoshita your friend?"
"What a thing to say. Why aren't you doing anything?" Hikigaya shot her a glance.
Tch. Fierce, alright—sitting down and looking up at her, he couldn't even see her face…
"Unless you request it, we won't proactively engage with local magicians," Kushinada Mikumo said with a face full of "magicians are trash." "The Official History Compilation Committee is too entangled with the politicians of this country. Starting a fight now would affect our plans."
"Can we not talk about 'plans'? Just admit you're chuunibyou already…" Hikigaya quipped instantly.
"We can actually use a name you prefer," Kushinada Mikumo said without changing her expression. Even being called chuunibyou didn't faze her.
This was already fanatic-level loyalty…
What a good little follower!
"No more nonsense. I'm going home to eat and sleep." Hikigaya picked at his ear, tossed the report aside, kicked off his shoes, and flopped onto the bed.
He wasn't that close with the Yukinoshita family here, so he'd see how their luck turned out. If they were still alive when he got back, he wouldn't mind helping them.
As for the two sisters, they'd definitely be fine. After all, those people knew very well what happened to anyone who tried to mess with his life.
In the end, people who sway with the wind were just unlikable.
Maybe because he was almost home, Hikigaya relaxed completely and drifted off to sleep.
Half-asleep, he felt someone place something over him.
He woke up to the sound of knocking.
Sitting up, he found a blanket had been laid over him—who knew by whom. Maybe it was Kushinada Mikumo.
"Coming."
He responded and walked over to open the door.
In the hallway outside, the Yomi martial artist girls and the magicians of the Bronze Black Cross were lined up in two neat rows, one on each side. The dark aura was off the charts.
Kushinada Mikumo and Liliana, the leaders of their respective groups, stood in the center.
Hikigaya felt a faint sense of tension between the two groups—probably because they looked down on each other's professions.
But that hostility didn't seem to exist between Kushinada Mikumo and Liliana. At their level, they were likely above such immaturity.
"Lord Hachiman, it's time to disembark," Kushinada Mikumo said.
Liliana had just opened her mouth but didn't speak when Kushinada Mikumo beat her to it. When Hikigaya looked at her, she only nodded silently.
"Alright, let's go," Hikigaya said and began walking down the corridor.
Kushinada Mikumo and Liliana followed behind him, and then everyone else began moving too.
The long hallway quickly came to an end, with sunlight pouring in from the other side of the hatch. It looked like a portal to another world—and for Hikigaya, it truly was.
Chiba and places outside of Chiba were two different worlds in his mind.
This was the sanctuary that gave him peace of mind. Only here was he not a calamity, not an anomaly—just a person.
He stepped through the hatch into a world of blue skies and bright sunshine.
He was back in Chiba.
"Onii-chan!"
A cheerful, excited voice came from ahead. Hikigaya looked over in surprise—Komachi was standing on the deck.
Next to her were Seishuin Ena—and Yukinoshita Haruno!
And that wasn't all—Hikigaya saw more familiar faces.
Shirahama Kenichi and Furinji Miu, along with an overly tall old man in a kimono. Several men and women martial artists with similar auras stood beside him.
Hikigaya ignored that last group and ran straight to Komachi, picking her up and spinning her around.
Then…
"Uwaaah—!" Komachi pouted and burst into tears.
This startled Hikigaya, and he quickly set her down.
"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" he asked anxiously.
Crap! Did he spin his sister dumb just now? Are little sisters under warranty?
"Wuu wuu, Ena-nee only said you were fine, but… Komachi was so scared you'd come back like before, not recognizing us anymore…" Komachi sobbed loudly and unceremoniously wiped her tears and snot all over Hikigaya.
He had a heartbroken expression at first, but his face quickly darkened—because he noticed Komachi was sneaking glances at his expression while wiping…
"What are you peeking for…" Hikigaya flicked her on the head. "While I'm in a good mood, go ahead and wipe all you want!"
"Okay!" Komachi responded sulkily and then started rubbing in earnest.
Watching this girl snuggle into him like a little cat, Hikigaya felt that he had finally emerged from that abnormal world—one filled with battles against gods.
Even though there were still annoying things to deal with, his mood was completely different now.