"Why... I..."
Kaguya Shinomiya struggled to get up from the ground, raising her hand once again to touch her cheek. But this time she discovered that this psychological suggestion action that always forced her to calm down was now completely ineffective.
Was Ye Xing's psychological impact on her too great?
Perhaps that was it...
Kendo, archery, judo...
Kaguya Shinomiya realised she had lost in all of them, and just like that joint exam, it was a crushing defeat where she couldn't even fight back.
When it came to academic results, she could still tell herself it was because she hadn't worked hard enough, because she had underestimated her opponent, that if she prepared seriously for a while, she might have hope of winning next time.
But in the competitions of kendo, archery, and judo, Kaguya Shinomiya could tell that Ye Xing hadn't received professional training as she had. Even his stances weren't that professional, and his attitude wasn't serious.
Even so, she still lost.
She even lost in archery, which she had been honing since childhood and was most proud of...
Even with double, five times, ten times, a hundred times the effort, could she still not win...
"Winning isn't the only thing that has meaning."
Ye Xing sat down directly beside Kaguya Shinomiya and spoke softly.
"Learning how to accept failure is also an essential part of being strong."
Kaguya Shinomiya froze upon hearing this, then let out a slight sigh.
"You didn't say that back in our school days. You said back then that, aside from first place, all other rankings had only one collective name: losers. Only first place held any meaning."
"Ah, that's where you're mistaken."
Ye Xing explained with complete seriousness.
"I'm number one, so of course I can maintain that perspective. The problem is, you're not number one, and you'll never beat me. You'd be better off learning to accept reality instead of arguing here."
Kaguya Shinomiya: "...Your words can be really hurtful sometimes."
Ye Xing replied indifferently.
"Failure is exactly that kind of hurtful thing. The reason you developed Adolescence Syndrome isn't that you're highly competitive or anything like that. It's simply because you can't accept the reality of failure, and even more so, you can't accept not being the most outstanding person."
"You don't want to win - you can only continue persevering when you believe you can win. Only then can you consider yourself valuable. That's all there is to it."
"This isn't something good - it's the weakness of being unable to accept failure."
Hearing Ye Xing's words, complex emotions surfaced in Kaguya Shinomiya's eyes. After several seconds of silence, she murmured.
"You've never failed... so naturally you wouldn't understand how I feel..."
"Don't say that, really, don't say that."
Ye Xing revealed a faint smile, speaking in a light tone.
"If it were not long ago, I might not have been able to refute your point. But coincidentally, I recently experienced my first failure in life."
"You? Failure?"
Kaguya Shinomiya lifted her head, looking at Ye Xing's profile, clearly unable to connect him with that word.
"Yes, failure."
Ye Xing nodded, replying with a smile.
"Although I didn't suffer any losses myself, a... friend who's very close to me sacrificed their future and ideals because of my failure. That the situation developed to that point was my failure."
Kaguya Shinomiya didn't know exactly what Ye Xing was referring to, but she felt an inexplicable pang of heartache and spoke softly.
"You... are you blaming yourself? This feeling... is truly painful... But you shouldn't dwell on it too much. If this continues..."
Hearing Kaguya's words, Ye Xing chuckled and retorted.
"A patient with Adolescence Syndrome is now counselling her own doctor? I don't need psychological counselling, but if you're offering physical relief, I wouldn't refuse."
"What kind of relief... I don't understand what you're saying..."
Kaguya first muttered this complaint, then her expression turned complicated.
"You... can you accept the fact of failure?"
Ye Xing's response took Kaguya by surprise.
"I can't accept it at all. So to avoid repeating past mistakes, I need help from more people - for instance, help from Kaguya Shinomiya herself."
"You need my help?"
Kaguya shook her head and sighed faintly.
"You mean the Shinomiya conglomerate's help, don't you..."
Ye Xing waved his hand, interrupting.
"The Shinomiya conglomerate's connections and resources are indeed valuable to me. However, if I had to choose between you and the Shinomiya conglomerate, I'd choose the former. In my view, you yourself, Kaguya Shinomiya, are far more valuable than the Shinomiya conglomerate, even without your status as the eldest daughter."
Kaguya was momentarily stunned, then shook her head with a wry smile.
"You're just saying that to flatter me."
"Think what you will."
Ye Xing replied noncommittally.
"Just mentioning this in passing - purely in passing - before I reached any agreement with your father, my club members and I were already helping you deal with your Adolescence Syndrome. Not only did this receive no assistance from the Shinomiya conglomerate, but because of your identity, it could have brought trouble upon us. So you can probably guess why we did it - I won't say more."
With that, Ye Xing stood up and walked straight outside, waving as he delivered his final words.
"Of course, if you can't even overcome Adolescence Syndrome, that would just prove I overestimated your worth. You, Kaguya Shinomiya, would be nothing special after all."
...
Later that day.
After seeing Shoko Makinohara, Naruko Anjou and Menma back to his home, Ye Xing received a phone call from Natsumi Suga.
"Are you free now? There's something I need to discuss with you."
"What is it?"
"Someone called saying they're holding a gathering tonight and want me to attend and cover it. They also asked me to invite you along."
Hearing this, Ye Xing laughed.
"Not just inviting you, but hoping I'll come too? Another Mask fan gathering?"
Natsumi replied noncommittally.
"Hmm... it doesn't sound like that. And Mr Aoki, the head of Kyoto's famous Mask fan club, isn't involved. He usually organises these events. Perhaps it's unrelated to Mask?"
"Unrelated? Then I won't go. I've been busy all day, and I'm tired."
"Been busy for a long time? With what? Your school festival has already ended, hasn't it? Don't tell me you've been busy preparing for midterm exams - I'd never believe you'd study seriously even if you beat me to death."
"Hmm... let me think."
Ye Xing recalled today's schedule and replied with a laugh.
"I provided psychological counselling for a beautiful, wealthy young lady with a well-proportioned figure, black hair and red eyes, followed by an intense judo match in the dojo."
"Is this judo of yours... proper judo?"
"Extremely proper."
"Like I'd believe that."
Natsumi Suga first muttered this, then said meaningfully.
"I only have this one arrangement today, too. If you accompany me, there might be a reward tonight."
Hearing this, Ye Xing frowned slightly and spoke with righteous indignation.
"Miss Natsumi Suga, what kind of person do you take me for? Using such a misleading tone to say such things..."
Before Natsumi Suga could respond, Ye Xing abruptly changed his tone.
"You had conditions like this and didn't say so earlier? Send me the location, let's meet there."
Natsumi Suga couldn't help but laugh.
"OK."
...
Half an hour later, at the entrance of a long-abandoned hospital in the remote suburbs of Kyoto.
Ye Xing glanced at the building before him, then looked at Natsumi Suga beside him, unable to resist commenting.
"Are you sure this is the place?"
Natsumi Suga nodded, wearing a smiling expression.
"I'm certain. Though it's strange to hold a gathering here, according to my journalist's intuition, it's often places like this where you can uncover the most valuable news... Eek!"
Just as Natsumi Suga was speaking halfway, a sound resembling an old man's cough suddenly came from somewhere, startling her so much that her face paled. She immediately hid in Ye Xing's embrace, her legs beginning to tremble.
"Come on..."
Ye Xing looked exasperated.
"That's just a hedgehog's call, isn't it? Look how scared you are."
"I-Is that so..."
Natsumi Suga tried to calm herself, forcing a smile.
"Fortunately... you came with me. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn't have dared come alone today."
"That means you still have some remaining rationality, knowing to stay away from dangerous places."
Ye Xing examined the hospital building shrouded in darkness, thoughtful.
"No electricity, so security cameras definitely aren't working. The route here is quite remote, too, with no surveillance cameras. It's truly an ideal location for crime."
Hearing this, Natsumi Suga's expression changed.
"Don't... don't deliberately scare me..."
"Whether I'm scaring you or not, we'll know once we go in."
When they reached the entrance of the abandoned hospital building, they saw an expressionless middle-aged man wearing plain black clothes, with no vitality in his face, standing quietly there.
"Miss Suga... and... Mr Ye Xing, we've been awaiting your arrival for some time."
"Oh? Are we two that important?"
"Of course."
Hearing Ye Xing's words, the middle-aged man nodded, a somewhat eerie, stiff smile appearing on his face.
"You two are today's most important guests."
Even without Ye Xing saying anything, Natsumi Suga could sense that something was wrong.
"I see, let's go then."
Ye Xing remained expressionless, merely taking Natsumi Suga's hand and leading her as they followed the middle-aged man into the abandoned hospital building.
After proceeding through the stairwell to the depths of the fifth floor, they reached a spacious, empty room where several candles were lit. These faint lights did nothing to dispel the eerie atmosphere; instead, they made it feel even more chilling.
Inside the room, over a dozen men and women of various ages sat. Though their attire differed, all wore the same strange smile as the middle-aged man.
This scene made Natsumi Suga break out in a cold sweat.
What exactly was going on?
Nighttime, an abandoned hospital, over a dozen people with eerie smiles sitting in a circle within a dimly lit room...
Was this some kind of horror movie set?
"Please, have a seat."
What struck Natsumi Suga as even more bizarre was that after she and Ye Xing entered the room, the middle-aged man closed the door and stood there as if preventing their escape.
"Um..."
Natsumi Suga forced herself to calm down, barely maintaining her composure.
"May I ask what exactly you've invited Ye Xing and me here for today?"
"Since Miss Suga asks, we'll be direct."
The middle-aged man spoke slowly.
"We... saw Mr Ye Xing's published views about Mask. We're very pleased that there are still rational people in Kyoto who don't worship that figure as a deity, people like us."
"Is... that so..."
Natsumi Suga forced a smile, unsure how to respond.
"And you, Miss Suga, as a longtime supporter of Mask, didn't express any opinion during the recent incident. Presumably because you've also begun to question Mask's actions."
Natsumi Suga remained silent upon hearing this.
She had wanted to show support, but Mask himself hadn't allowed it.
Seeing that Natsumi Suga didn't respond, the middle-aged man continued unconcerned.
"Kyoto shouldn't have become like this. The so-called Mask is merely a hypocrite. There's only one true justice in this world, and that is..."
At this point, the smile on the middle-aged man's face grew even more peculiar as he slowly said:
"Izanami-sama."
Hearing this name, Ye Xing shook his head and sighed helplessly.
"Damn, it's just a cult. Got me all excited thinking it was some grand conspiracy."
"Cult?"
The middle-aged man's smile faded as he spoke slowly.
"It's normal you'd think that way without understanding our faith. This world needs complete purification, and the one who can achieve this..."
Before he could finish, Ye Xing interrupted directly.
"Boring, don't want to hear it, uninteresting."
Seeing this attitude, the middle-aged man showed displeasure and said slowly:
"Let me be blunt then."
"Miss Suga, you're currently the most influential independent media writer in Kyoto. Any article you publish will cause a heated discussion."
"And Mr Ye Xing, we've all seen your photos dressed as Mask. They're absolutely identical, completely indistinguishable."
"Our plan is quite simple. We hope Mr Ye Xing can disguise yourself as Mask's appearance, appear in public according to our commands, then pretend to be defeated by our side's people, thereby crushing the Kyoto citizens' blind worship of Mask."
"After that, we hope Miss Suga can write a report about our sect, riding on this momentum to free Kyoto from the control of hypocrites and convert it to the faith of the true deity."
Ye Xing nodded and laughed.
"Your planning is rather thorough, but what if we refuse?"
"This isn't a negotiation."
The middle-aged man pulled a handgun from his chest, pointing the dark muzzle at Ye Xing before him, his eyes revealing distorted madness.
"If you refuse, then you're enemies, and we'll kill your families before killing you..."
"Ho!"
Ye Xing let out an exclamation of unclear meaning.
"Kill my family? You lot are actually a bit impressive."
"If you know fear, then cooperate obediently..."
"I'm an orphan."
As soon as Ye Xing uttered those words, the room fell into silence.
Looking at the middle-aged man's stunned expression, Ye Xing sighed softly with an expression of frustrated disappointment.
"Don't you even do basic background checks before threatening someone? Do you people have any brains at all? Has worshipping that evil god made you stupid?"
"Then we'll kill your friends..."
"Don't be so quick with the threats."
Even facing the gun barrel, Ye Xing maintained a calm and composed demeanour, even appearing somewhat curious.
"First, tell me, how can you be so certain that this Izanami god actually exists? What miracles has it performed? Where and when were they performed? What's the distribution of your cult - only in Kyoto, or throughout all of Japan? Approximately how many members are in your cult? Besides those present here, are there other members? Are there any high-level believers who can wield divine power? Was the incident at Toyogasaki High School last time also your doing?"
This barrage of questions completely bewildered the cult's believers.
"You... why are you asking these things?"
Facing the middle-aged man's suspicion, Ye Xing replied with complete seriousness.
"Of course because I want to join. You've seen my attitude toward Mask - I don't support him, considering him just a dangerous individual who acts on whim. If your cult is correct, and the deity you worship has evidence of actual existence, then naturally I'd be willing to 'choose the best perch like a fine bird, select the right master like a good minister'. If Natsumi Suga and I cooperate sincerely, the effect would be much better than through threats, right?"
"Well... that makes sense."
Though the middle-aged man felt something wasn't quite right, upon careful consideration, it did seem reasonable.
If the other party was willing to actively cooperate and join, a self-media writer with public opinion influence, and someone who could convincingly undermine Mask's public image, would indeed be very valuable.
"Lord Izanami, of course, exists, and has indeed manifested miracles."
The middle-aged man slowly began speaking.
"Some time ago, that Seishu Akoya was a believer chosen by Lord Izanami and granted power. And the green flames in that commercial building were also Lord Izanami's punishment for those who worship the false Mask. I might as well tell you directly - even among the higher-ups of the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department, there are believers who have been granted power by Lord Izanami."
"I see."
Ye Xing appeared convinced, then asked again immediately.
"So, where exactly is this Izanami god you worship located? Which city?"
"Hmph, since it's a true deity, it's naturally omnipresent."
"Oh."
Ye Xing chuckled in response.
"As expected, you low-level believers without any abilities couldn't possibly know the location of that thing's true form. Never mind, I've already obtained valuable information. Next..."
A black longsword materialised in Ye Xing's hand as he said softly.
"Time to send you on your way."
"You bastard..."