Chapter 17: Ch 17 – I love you

They ran across the bridge and quickly arrived at the island.  

“You wanna split up? We’ll cover more ground.” asked Chiaki. 

“No, I just…I don’t feel easy to do that.” said Hajime somberly.

“It’s Okay. I know you’re worried about me.” said Chiaki with a smile. 

Hajime couldn’t help but smile back. 

“Let’s check the titty typhoon first.” said Hajime. 

The two of them entered by pushing the door open. As expected it was the familiar empty hall with a stage at the back that they had become accustomed to. 

“Nothing interesting seems to be here.” said Hajime. 

“We should definitely check out what is behind the curtains.” said Chiaki. 

“Yeah.”

Hajime jumped up onto the stage. He then helped Chiaki climb as well. Chiaki raised the curtain, it was pitch black dark. 

“I’m going in.” she said and entered the darkness. 

“Hey wait” said Hajime and entered as well. 

“There should be a switch somewhere, right?” asked Hajime. 

“Yeah, on the left wall.” responded Chiaki. 

Hajime raised his arms in front of himself and walked forward. He grasped at nothing until eventually his hands touched the wall. He felt the wall until his hand was on a metal. Hajime slid his hand on it until eventually he found the button and pressed it. The lights turned on, when he turned around he was in for a world of shock.

Nagito was standing there. In front of him was Chiaki but he had pressed his palm upon her mouth. And in Nagito’s other hand was a knife and its tip was directly positioned near Chiaki’s throat. Hajime’s stomach somersaulted. He grit his teeth and nervously asked. 

“What the hell do you want? You monster!”

“Hehehe. Don’t make such an ugly face. And definitely don’t make any sound. I just want what you want Hajime. It’s hope. But I guess, in your case, you wanted despair.” said Nagito with a viscous grin.  

“I don’t understand what you’re saying.” grunted Hajime with relatively less volume than his words before. 

“You still don’t get it, do you?” said Nagito with contempt. 

Without warning Nagito threw the knife towards Hajime, Hajime quickly dodged to the right, but the knife slid his left arm.

“Gah, you bastard!” yelled Hajime. 

But before he could attack, Nagito had already placed another knife upon Chiaki’s throat. Chiaki’s eyes had become widened and a tint of sadness had formed within it. The tip of the knife stabbed onto Chiaki’s throat and Chiaki squirmed. 

“Stop!” yelled Hajime. 

“You’re not in the position to order anyone, reserve course rookie” hissed Nagito. 

Blood trickled down from the small stab wound down her neck. Still unwavering, Chiaki looked at Hajime. 

“Just tell me what you want, please. I don’t understand you, Nagito. For the life of me, I wanted to trust you, I thought you would change. But as time goes on you’re just becoming more and more unbearable” said Hajime with anger.   

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“Heh, hahaha. You wanted to trust me? Someone as hopelessly violent and abnormal as me? Hahaha, maybe that file was wrong about you Hajime. You do have a talent. The ultimate gullible idiot.” taunted Nagito with a smile. 

“The file…” mumbled Hajime depressingly and he remembered. 

“Y-you know about everything, don’t you? That file also contained information about our profiles during our school life. So you must know that I actually do have a talent. A lot of it.”

Nagito’s eyes widened. But quickly he regained composure. 

“What are you saying? A lot of talents? Have you started hallucinating about talent now? How hopelessly pathetic.”

“Don’t try to play dumb Nagito. If you’re truly the Nagito that created an unsolveable murder mystery to kill us all, then I understand you, your motive. You’re trying to kill us all.” declared Hajime.

“Oh?” said Nagito carelessly but his eyes became much more serious afterwards.

“You found on that file about how our class, everyone who participated in the Jabberwock Island killing game is a Remnant of Despair. The only person who isn’t a remnant of despair is Chiaki. You planned to make her be the sole survivor of that incident. ” said Hajime confidently. 

“Hmm, considering how you know more than you initially let on, it seems my plan failed huh. You lived longer in the killing game, long enough to know the full contents of the file.” said Nagito with dagger-like eyes pointed towards Hajime. 

“Yeah, I did. I know that my identity was an Ultimate Despair. Not just any Ultimate Despair but a leader of sorts…Izuru Kamakura. The Ultimate Hope.”

Nagito bit his lips, he sent a deadly glare towards Hajime. 

“You piss me off the most, Hajime. Someone like you, a talentless nobody, becoming the Ultimate Hope and the Ultimate Despair to bring havoc upon people. It’s seriously unimaginable, I had my fair share of fun mocking you, lying to you about how you don’t have any talent. Still, I want you to suffer more.” grumbled Nagito with contempt and hatred.

“Fine, I’m willing to suffer. Obviously my choice to enter the Kamakura project has doomed the world. It is my responsibility. So let Chiaki go. She is not a remnant of despair. And do whatever you want to do with me, I’m ready” yelled Hajime.

Chiaki tried to shake her head but Nagito pressed the knife harder on her neck in which she froze.

“Interesting, you’re willing to sacrifice yourself for her?” asked Nagito. 

“The reason we were able to beat your unsolvable murder was because of Chiaki. She solved the mystery and she sacrificed herself to protect us. Now I’m willing to do the same.” said Hajime earnestly. 

Tears trickled down from Chiaki’s eyes and rolled down her cheeks.

“Quite impressive. I didn’t expect a remnant of despair to act like this” said Nagito.     

“You don’t know me, Nagito. I am Hajime Hinata, I am free from the past that plagues me. Izuru Kamakura has plunged the world to despair. But me, the rest of the survivors and the future foundation managed to stop Junko’s second coming. I really wish you could have been there, Nagito. If you were there, maybe we could have become friends.” said Hajime with a triumphant smile.         

“Nice words, I bet you were able to brainwash and manipulate the average folk with that talented speech of yours Hajime, no… Izuru Kamakura. But I won’t take chances with a remnant like you. It was stupid of me to think Hope’s peak academy would give birth to hope. Only those who follow their own hope, listens to nobody, can achieve the ultimate hope. And that person…is me!” declared Nagito. 

Both of them looked at one another, sharing their final stares.  

“Take that knife I threw towards you.” said Nagito. 

Hajime gulped, turned around and grabbed the knife from the floor and looked at Nagito nervously. 

“Now…kill yourself with it.” said Nagito.

Hajime looked at the knife then looked at Chiaki. She was still crying, her gentle eyes deeply looking towards him. He couldn’t help but be mesmerized by her gaze.

“Chiaki…I was…happy. Happy to see you again. I never expected to. But seeing you alive, holding your hand again, it really made me happy. I…I love you” said Hajime, his eyes teary.    

Hajime lifted both of his arms in the air, the knife edge aiming towards his chest. 

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