Returnee from Another World - Zetro Translation

Chapter 75: A Single Tear

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“You’re awfully late, Kaburaki-kun. You kept me waiting quite a while,” a woman said the moment I stepped into the luxurious hotel room.

Beside her stood another woman. One was Higuchi Yukari, disguised as the Middle Eastern royalty Sabaf, and the other was Kyouka Amasawa, wrapped in just a bath towel, head bowed in shame.

“Look, Kyouka-san, your dear Shuu-kun has finally arrived,” Yukari said.

I feigned shock at her words. I nearly snorted at my own act, but it couldn’t be helped. I was recreating a scene from my memories right here, right now. The interaction with Yukari wasn’t critical, just a precaution. Honestly, it probably didn’t matter much whether I played along or not.

“Shuu-kun…” Kyouka muttered.

The memory of rushing to this hotel after Kyouka’s email, only to witness her being taken by Akuzawa Hitoshi—that was the scene I was reenacting. Recreating some part of it must be the key to saving her. I’d pieced that together because the common thread in my memories of the women I’m tied to was witnessing something about them.

“Heh, sorry, Kaburaki-kun. It seems I’ve stolen your girlfriend, Kyouka-san. She’s completely enthralled with me. Well, women know best how to please each other, so it’s no surprise. Right, Kyouka-san?” Yukari said.

I never believed saving Kyouka from Akuzawa meant I’d fully rescued her. At first, I thought following the memory’s script after getting her email might have done it. But now, I see that as overly optimistic. Kyouka herself wasn’t in that moment. Considering the pattern with the other three women, witnessing Kyouka in person feels crucial. I suspect her fate is sealed only when I see her in that moment.

I’m not certain, of course. Only the one orchestrating this—some god or whatever—knows the truth. But Kyouka’s case, where I only saw an email, feels off. Does that mean I have to live through every memory? That doesn’t seem right either. With Yukari, I only recreated part of the memory.

The first memory was seeing Kato Ayano on a rainy day at my house, unchanged from reality. I’d just returned from that other world, and neither Ayano nor I had altered our actions leading to that moment. It was bound to happen.

The second was seeing the angel wing tattoo on Sayaka Hojo’s back. I was supposed to meet her as a salaryman, but I ran into her at Yasunaga’s club by chance, seeing her tattoo much earlier. This suggests dates and times don’t matter—only the event itself.

The third was seeing Yukari after she lost her left leg. That memory was clearly different. In my memory, it was a bike accident in a hospital, but in reality, it was a fall near the Gospel Love Church. This means the place and circumstances leading up to the event don’t matter either.

I also suspect Nishikuse Eishin wasn’t involved in the bike accident in my memory. The bad blood between him and Yukari stemmed from me giving Nishikuse the Orc Semen aphrodisiac. That led to Miki falling under his control, which enraged Yukari, prompting her to storm the Gospel Love Church. In a memory world where Orc Semen shouldn’t exist, this sequence seems unlikely. So, Nishikuse’s involvement in the bike accident is probably minimal. If I’m right, the third party in these events doesn’t need to match the memory.

Considering all this, I concluded that the key is me witnessing something about Kyouka, regardless of time, place, circumstances, or the other person involved.

There are other memories, like those with Miki, but the ones with Ayano, Sayaka, Yukari, and Kyouka stand out. They’re vivid, almost replaying in my mind with a strange, colorful clarity.

“Ugh… Yes, I’m enthralled with Sabaf-denka. Her caresses feel so good…” Kyouka said, her voice trembling.

If I hadn’t used my abilities to track Kyouka, I would’ve seen her with Akuzawa days after that email. I intervened and twisted fate. But, given Yukari’s case—where she still lost her leg despite my altered actions—there’s likely something unchangeable. Normally, changing my actions should alter what follows, especially for the women tied to me. Yet Yukari still lost her leg. Is there an inescapable force of fate at play?

If there’s an unchangeable element, even saving Kyouka from Akuzawa might not stop him—or someone else—from coming for her again. Maybe another person will take his place. This could keep happening. No matter how many times I save Kyouka from danger, similar events might repeat until I witness her being taken. Is her fate to be stolen unavoidable? That’s the conclusion I reached, and it doesn’t seem far-fetched.

If so, I have to set it up myself. I need to be the one witnessing it, so someone else—not me—must take Akuzawa’s place. Whether it’s staged or not, recreating the memory’s scene should count as fulfilling it. If my intent or the staged nature invalidates it, I’m out of options. But since circumstances don’t matter, my orchestration shouldn’t be an issue.

I can’t tell Kyouka, though. It’d mean revealing most of my secrets. Even hiding the killings in the other world, explaining my redo of life would require spilling enough to convince her, which is tough. I’m not ready to share that with Sayaka or Yukari either.

For now, this is my only move: stage Kyouka being taken and witness it myself. If I can’t escape fate’s force, this feels like the only way to save her.

“That’s how it is. I’m terribly sorry, Kaburaki-kun, but could you give up on Kyouka-san?” Yukari said.

Even if this works perfectly, I can’t proudly say I saved Kyouka. It’s just the lesser evil. Better Yukari, a woman, toying with her than Akuzawa or some other man violating her. It doesn’t lessen Kyouka’s pain, and to others, my actions might seem self-serving. They probably are. I don’t really want to save Kyouka—I just don’t want another man to take her.

“No, Shuu-kun, it’s not like that…” Kyouka tried to explain.

“Kyouka-san, we had an agreement, didn’t we?” Yukari interrupted.

Kyouka was about to spill the truth, but Yukari stopped her. Kyouka’s been told not to say too much, and this is part of Yukari’s bet on whether I’d trust Kyouka. It’s not really a bet—I just wanted a plausible excuse to erase the 8-million-yen debt. Canceling that much money without a good reason would seem suspicious.

And then, seeing a single tear fall from Kyouka’s eyes, I understood.

I needed to witness this moment.