After a while, they finally found a secluded spot, but, of course, it was equipped with surveillance caras.
"Tsk..." Mr. Nobody clicked his tongue and pulled a can of graffiti paint out of the trunk.
He’d been carrying it around with him for a very long ti.
*Ssssh...* The can of orange paint completely covered the cara and drew a rather striking piece of graffiti beneath it.
The graffiti itself was a dripping orange smiley face.
The smiley’s smile and eyes were done in black and a smudged style.
"Smile, you’re on cara," read the caption beneath the graffiti.
"So this is what the people of Concord usually do..." Marie whispered in awe right next to his ear.
"I think only a psychopath with no sense of self-preservation would do sothing like this."
"Ooh..."
The girl’s chin was almost touching his shoulder, but when he turned around, he encountered a rather strange phenonon.
It seed as though there was so kind of invisible barrier around her body, making it impossible to touch her unless she wanted it herself.
Most likely, if he tried to attack her, a bullet from his revolver or his fist would simply stop right in front of her body.
’Insane... Just an overwhelming power.’
"Haa..." he sighed dejectedly.
"..." Marie just smiled sweetly at him.
’I definitely don’t like her...’
Returning to the motorcycle, he hid the spray can and finally untied Kuronu’s hands.
It had to be admitted that Marie’s arrival had, after all, helped them get through the checkpoint at the south gate.
"Hmm, were you guys playing so kind of ga?"
"Yeah, kidnapper and hostage. It’s a really popular ga with kids these days."
"Hehe, sounds funny," she laughed.
anwhile, Kuronuma still couldn’t stop trembling and hugged the cat again.
"M-Mr., what’s going on, anyway...?"
"I haven’t the faintest idea myself," he replied, putting his hand to his face. "In any case, you can relax for now and take in the view of Southville. You won’t find a more pleasant sight anywhere in Concord."
At that mont, Marie joined the conversation.
"Ah, I’ve read about that. The people of Southville were the only ones who resisted..."
"Wait a second." He slipped his hands under Kuronuma’s helt and covered her ears. "Go on."
"...The arrival of Big Brother and the change in power. They say it was only because of their unshakable will and loyalty to the forr Peak of Knowledge that Concord was able to preserve part of the priceless culture of the past era."
"...Yeah. Preserving a couple of houses, songs, and recipes for coffee and pasta in exchange for their own will to live... Quite possibly the worst deal imaginable. Didn’t they write about that in your books?"
"Oh... No, this is the first ti I’ve heard that point of view," Marie replied, blinking her eyes with interest.
For a while, they just kept chatting.
To an outsider, they must have looked like good acquaintances or friends.
"How interesting..." she kept repeating.
It seed Marie’s mood had genuinely improved. This was evident from the way she was skipping around the motorcycle, practically floating through the air.
She resembled so kind of strange and sweet fairy.
At the sa ti, not a trace of emotion could be seen on Mr. Nobody’s face. Of course, the girl couldn’t see that, since he was wearing a mask.
"Amazing... I never would have thought a vegetarian could actually live in Concord. For what reason did you take that vow?"
"Out of love for fruit," he replied casually.
"Hehe, wow."
In fact, it was true, and Mr. Nobody really was a vegetarian. Perhaps the only one in Concord.
Most likely, there could have been more, but fresh fruits and vegetables were practically impossible to get without connections.
"But... for so reason, I feel like it’s not just about your love for fruit," Marie replied with a smile.
"..."
"By the way..." When he didn’t respond, she finally ca back down to earth and awkwardly pulled her hand from behind her back. "Would you like to give it a try? After talking to you, I realized that you really..."
"I already have one."
Marie handed him the flyer announcing the selection process to beco a worthy Champion of Dreams.
"Really?!" the girl exclaid in an odd burst of joy and moved closer to him.
Up close, her appearance was truly irresistible. Her long, snow-white eyelashes fluttered sweetly over her sparkling gray eyes.
Her face was so captivating that it made one want to reach out and gently stroke her smooth cheek.
On top of that, her figure looked simply breathtaking. It was hard to imagine anyone who wouldn’t want to grab her slender waist and embrace her seemingly fragile back.
’Definitely not my type...’ Mr. Nobody thought dispassionately as she leaned toward him.
"Are you really going to participate?!" Marie said with genuine joy in her voice.
It seed like any mont now, she would simply rush over and hug him.
"I doubt it. This selection was held last year, too, and I didn’t participate."
"But why?"
"Why would I want that?"
"To beco the Champion of Dream, of course! Don’t you want that?"
"Hah..." He gave a dry chuckle. There wasn’t a shred of joy or any other positive emotion in that laugh. Mr. Nobody exuded such sadness that even Marie could feel it. "I don’t want that. I never have, and I doubt I ever will. I hope there really is soone worthy in Concord, and that your wish, Marie... The wish of the whole world will finally co true."
"But I feel it... I feel that you’re worthy of giving it a try."
"And why on earth do you feel that?"
Marie blinked and quickly reached out her hand toward him. The movent was so fast that he didn’t even notice...
"Because of this." The girl’s palm touched his chest. Right where his heart was.
"..." He felt his whole being freeze.
"People are always afraid to take... the first step. After all, to do so, they need to step over the very thing that has been keeping them where they are... and forget what lies behind them." Her voice felt incredibly warm, and her hand gently stroked his chest. "Nobody wants to do that, even if it ans living with terrible pain. They keep standing where they are, even if all they need to do to heal is take a step forward..."
"..."
"...Because sotis we don’t want to heal." Her hand slowly moved away from his chest and gently touched his cheek. "Because the pain we feel... is the only connection to what we’ve lost."
Her words sank straight into his soul.
That feeling... That connection... Those words...
How deeply they resonated with what had been in his heart all along.
"But every heart wants to dream... even yours. Please, let it begin its journey, straight toward its dream." Her sparkling gray eyes t his dull blue ones, which looked almost gray. "You’ll co, right?"
"I... I’ll think about it."
He sighed.
’Okay, who am I kidding? I like her.’
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