HKZ 165

165

Tarou is being taken to see Ririsu by Harisuri, her butler. Tarou is looking forward to seeing her, but is also nervous. However, even though she's not with him, he feels closer to Eve than ever before, as he promises to bring Ririsu back.

Meanwhile, Ririsu has been standing near the coast so long that Alice has become concerned she might catch a cold. She tells her that her mother should be finished with her job the day after tomorrow, so she should just go wait back at the manor. However, Ririsu says she doesn't want to ever go back and doesn't want to be in Japan anymore.

Alice tells her that her father (Harisuri) has come to greet her once more before she leaves. Meanwhile, Tarou recalls Summer Vacation at the coast as they pull up to the Villa. Alice answers the door and is a bit panicked, while also being surprised to see Tarou. She almost refers to Ririsu as "Ririto." She claims that Ririsu suddenly jumped off the veranda, which Harisuri believes is because she must have seen Tarou coming. Alice is worried about her health as it is cold outside and wants to find her urgently but Tarou says he'll go instead. Alice interjects but Harisuri instead encourages him. Alice doesn't understand, but Harisuri said it was all according to plan. (You know the phrase, lol)

In the woods, Tarou calls out. "Listen to me! I understand everything! Eve told me why you did what you did... it was for my sake! And, I finally remembered what happened 11 years ago the day we parted! So, I want you to hear everything... now more than ever, I want to tell you all bout how I feel!"

Tarou trips and looks up, to see Ririsu in a girly dress up in a tree, just like before when she was escaping the party all those months ago. She jumps down and tries to escape, but he pleads with her to wait. He grabs her bare shoulders. She tells him that she doesn't care if he remembers now, she's over it. She curtly tells him to go back home. However, she is caught off guard by Tarou giving her his coat. He asks for her forgiveness for everything she's been put through all this time. However, she barks back at him that she doesn't want anything to do with them from here on. She says "After I leave Japan, i want to forget everything up until now. I want to go on living my life while pretending I can't see them... and you guys should forget about me, too. Just be together with Eve like you want. That would be our 'Happy End.'"

Tarou responds, "You're dead wrong. I made a promise to Ebino to bring you back with me. Please, hear me out."

Tarou tells her everything as they sit together on the coast. It's the same story from previous chapters, summarized: Tarou had inadvertently headbutted Ririsu and lost his ability to see FLZs, and the feeling of losing his first love made him feel heartbroken and the feeling remained even after having forgotten what happened. So, he never saw that Eve was an heartbreak zombie for 10 years. Eve had hidden her true form behind a facade of being a proper first love zombie. When Tarou felt betrayed by Eve and Riri, Eve lost her reason for existing and reverted back to her Heartbreak Zombie form. As an HBZ, she hated Ririsu, which is why she adopted that attitude toward her. Ririsu seems to understand.

Tarou goes on, "However, Ebino was able to return Eve back to normal." Ririsu is surprised by this. He continues, "She was mad at us. She said that while we kept saying that Eve had feelings of her own, we were actually not paying attention to what her feelings actually were. She told me to really listen to her to find out what she really desires."

Ririsu reflects on how Eve had told her that what she really desires more than anything is for Ririsu to have been a girl and for Tarou to have fallen in love with her.

Tarou continues, "I gave everything back to Eve. My forgotten past, my true feelings I kept hidden... Eve accepted the truth that she was a Heartbreak zombie. That said, we've grown so much as people over the course of the year. So, even though she's a heartbreak zombie, she was able to encourage me to go out to face you with a smile on her face."

Ririsu seems touched, but her feelings are complex. Tarou stands and faces her. "So, that being said... I came here to change your mind."

End of Chapter