Returned from Another World, Earth Turned Out to Be Quite the Fantasy Too. Also, Losing Heroines, Stop Looking This Way. - V4 Chapter 20

Chapter 20: “On the Bullet Train, Aren’t We?”

“Wow, that kid was strong, huh? Even if I fought him seriously, I don’t know if I’d win. If we weren’t in Tono, we might’ve been the ones who ended up dead.”

“…That guy… Next time I see him, I’ll kill him.”

On the bullet train heading back to Kyoto, Shinonome Abe was happily eating a station lunch, while Madoka Abe sipped on a bottle of mineral water to quench his thirst.

Compared to Shinonome’s relaxed and carefree demeanor, Madoka’s irritation was obvious, his earlier composure nowhere to be found.

“Madoka? What’s wrong?”

“…Nothing.”

“Come to think of it, I never got that kid’s name.”

“Yura. Natsuki Yura.”

“Oh, wow. What are the odds of that? The gods sure like to mess with people, huh?”

Shinonome paused for a moment, setting down his chopsticks, and reached out to pat Madoka’s head.

Madoka, however, swatted his brother’s arm away.

“You’ve changed a lot too, Madoka. I only met that kid a handful of times, but he was a good one. That was about four years ago, right? His family moved to Kyoto because of his parents’ job or something… and by chance, you two hit it off.”

“Every day with him was fun. Being born into this old Abe family… I never had any friends. But he, he became my friend without caring about any of that. —And that’s where it all went wrong. A normal kid shouldn’t have been hanging around with a psychic like me. Because of that, a bad oni took notice… and he ended up getting killed. No matter how much I regret it… it’s too late.”

Shinonome also knew about Madoka’s friend.
He didn’t know the exact details of how his younger brother met this friend, but he clearly remembered Madoka’s smile when he told him about making a really close friend.

But about two weeks later, one day, Madoka came home covered in blood.
Shinonome, along with the rest of the household, panicked, worried about what had happened and if Madoka was injured. But the blood wasn’t his—it belonged to his friend.

In Kyoto, the oni forces are led by Shuten-doji.

They are enemies that the Abe Clan is tasked with destroying.

From the oni’s perspective, the Abe Clan is likely their greatest threat.

While Shuten-doji is only interested in strong opponents, the lesser oni aren’t as picky.

Back then, Madoka had yet to awaken his spiritual powers. It was likely those lower-tier oni who targeted him, one of the younger Abe siblings. Tragically, Natsuki Yura, his friend, got caught up in it.

Unluckily, this incident became the catalyst for Madoka’s spiritual powers to awaken.

He gained a potential second only to Shinonome, the next head of the Abe Clan.

However, for Madoka, his spiritual abilities felt like a curse—a power he’d gained at the cost of his friend’s life.

While both Madoka and Shinonome believed that yokai who didn’t harm humans could be treated amicably, the trauma left Madoka with a deep hatred for all yokai, unable to forgive any of them.

“I’m not telling you to forget, but you’ve got to move on.”

“…The only way I’ll move on from that kid’s death is by tearing the oni that killed him to shreds.”

“Fair enough. I won’t stop you, but take care of yourself.”

“I know. You’re aware of my abilities, right? The oni I’ve turned into shikigami act as my shield, so I’m not going to die easily.”

“…But half of those shikigami are out of commission, aren’t they?”

At his brother’s pointed remark, Madoka fell silent.

It was true. Thanks to Natsuki’s attack, Madoka had escaped with his life only by forcing one of his oni shikigami to take the brunt of the damage.

Still, more shikigami had been consumed than the number of attacks he’d actually received.

In short, Natsuki’s strikes had exceeded what the oni could endure—something that rarely happened.

“Next time, I won’t even give him the chance to attack. I’ll just kill him with my trump card right from the start.”

With that, Madoka clammed up, clearly unwilling to discuss Natsuki any further.

Shinonome, unfazed, resumed eating his bento.

As he enjoyed his meal, a thought crossed his mind.

(I can’t tell Madoka, but… that Natsuki Yura I remember and the Natsuki Yura we just met… they kind of resemble each other. But that can’t be possible… right?)

〜〜Afterword〜〜

For now, the Abe brothers have returned to Kyoto.

Meanwhile, in the seat behind them:
Kumazaki: “Oh my, oh my, ufufu. Hello there, darlings, I’m Kumako Kumazaki.”

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