Sana’s Promise

TL: Daemon

ED: PuffyPyjamas

“What does it mean by breaking up because you like them? How does that even work?”

I tilted my head in confusion while in Sana’s room.

“It’s trying to say that it’s like an action they took while thinking of them…”

Hearing my question, Sana answered with a slightly hesitant expression and started off with an explanation.

“Isn’t that a bit contradictory?”

“Even if you say that, Sana is troubled on how to respond.”

See, it’s written over here, Sana flipped through the manga that I returned and arrived at the relevant pages. I was pretty free over new year’s break, and so today, I finished reading the manga that I borrowed from Sana and returned it to her. I have quite a few of typical shounen mangas, but this time, I decided to read a shoujo manga that Sana recommended.

“I can’t really accept that.”

“It’s what the protagonist decided, so isn’t it fine? It was a decision made after considering the happiness of both people involved.”

“Is that really the case?”

“Don’t hate on it. This in itself is a type of happy ending.”

Isn’t this not happy? This is a romance manga ending where the two people involved each continue on their own path that they believe in.

“Enough with that, Nii-san help me out for a little bit.”

She handed me a controller before restarting the boss fight of a game. It’s an RPG, but during fights, another player can control another character.

Sana’s main character pulled out a sword, swung it and released multiple techniques.

“Support me, hurry! Your buff is late! What are you doing?”

“Be quiet, I’m in the middle of casting right now.”

The two of us fought and won against multiple boss-like monsters.

“…Are you worried about you and Sensei?”

You’re unusually on point.

“Ah, made a mistake.”

With a flashy explosion effect, the magician that I created took a direct hit from the enemy’s sure kill move. My HP instantly dropped to zero.

“H-heey!”

“My bad. I’ll leave the healing to you.”

“Geez! Your physical defence is like paper, so of course that’ll happen if you go to the front like that! Concentrate more!”

My younger sister is way too serious.

Sana’s character soon used a revival item and got me back up.

“Things will definitely be okay with Sensei.”

“Really?”

I matched up with her in conversation. However, a future where everything goes wrong is approaching.

“If Sensei were to make you cry, Sana will hit her.”

“Hey hey, that’s not calm at all.”

“Come on! Nii-san, if you become the target, then the whole balance of the fight breaks. Can you stand at your position already!?”

“Then you should be standing in a way where you can attract the aggro!”

After becoming the target, the magician that I was controlling started running around everywhere while casting a magic attack buff in a gap.

“It’s because I’m good at running around like this.”

“Did you say something?”

“The special move gauge is filled, Sana, you’re priority on it.”

“I got it. I got it.”

Special move—she activated a move that looked like a magic sword with a really long name. Despite that, the HP on the enemy still hadn’t disappeared.

An unbeatable enemy. The condition of the party is getting worse. Once items hit the bottom no one can be revived anymore.

Then, the main character controlled by Sana fell, and it turned into a game over.

“Nnnnn… that’s frustrating…”

“I feel like we definitely don’t have enough firepower. Are you not high enough level?”

“Isn’t it annoying to level up and grind?”

So, what? She seemed to say.

Games are great. There’s a clear enemy, and killing the enemy will allow you to move forward. Once the screen changes to the fight screen, you just need to fight.

If you fail, it’s easy to figure out what went wrong.

However, reality is different. I don’t know who the enemy is, I also don’t know whether I can or how to fight. There’s even the possibility that there isn’t an enemy in the first place.

There’s no change to a fight mode, and neither is there a change in the BGM. There isn’t any fanfare and neither is there a results screen.

You could only struggle with your legs and fall on your back multiple times.

“If you’re that worried, shouldn’t you just break up?”

“What?”

“It’s nothing. You probably think that it’s hard to get away from that huge chest after all.”

That’s not true. Well, they certainly are amazing.

“Did I do something wrong at some point?”

Did I make a choice at a fork that only results in a bad ending?

Even if I want to redo everything, there isn’t any will in my time leap ability. The past timeline only continues to advance into the spring of my second year of high school—there is no returning to the start. At this point in time at least.

Sana, who had opened a bag of potato chips and begun to eat them, restarted the fight and started to create her party.

“Something went wrong? What are you talking about, of course you were wrong from the start. You went out with a teacher as a student.”

…That’s true.

For a game where you would capture various girls, it’s the unlikely situation where you fall in love with a side character, confess to them, and date them.

It’s part of the many choices and developments that could seem like bugs.

“If anyone is worrying, shouldn’t it be Sensei rather than you that’s worrying more, Nii-san. She seems pretty airheaded, but she is a pretty serious person at heart.”

“True.”

As long as I don’t bring up breaking up, Hiiragi-chan will be the one to bring it up.

We’re seriously dating each other. When we’ve chosen to break up, there should at least be some sort of conflict. That has to be the case.

I’ll try asking Sana.

“…Hiiragi-sensei and Sanada Seiji are seriously dating each other. However, Hiiragi-sensei decided to break up and the two returned to being a teacher and a student respectively. What reason would that be?”

“What’s that supposed to be? A joke?”

Turning back to face me, Sana gave me two potato chips to eat.

These past few days, we’ve only had a bunch of New Year’s dishes, so the light salty flavor of junk food is irresistible.

“Rather than a joke… it’s more of a what if. If it were to happen, what would be the reason?”

Hmmm, Sana pursed her lips with an uninterested expression.

“A reason… It’s because Nii-san is cheating on her.”

“I wouldn’t do that.”

“I wonder. Even if Nii-san were to not think of it in that way, Sensei probably thinks that’s one of her weakest points.”

Cheating? Me? No way.

Right when I time leaped I was all about the high school girls, but now that I’ve gotten used to it, they’re just classmates. They’re all people I know too. Just like people from the same workplace. It’s amazing how fast you get used to them.

“Hiiragi-chan’s weakness… what is it?”

“Age.”

“Hey… that’s a straightforward way to put it…”

It’s not a weakness. Rather I can see it as a strength.

“It doesn’t matter what Nii-san thinks. In this case, the only thing that matters is how Sensei feels.”

Kuuh… With that logic, I can’t say anything back.

Even if we break up, there’s still a chance to redo it. However… if a break up is coming, then I would want to avoid it. I love her, and I want to be with her.

If I give up here, would I be able to look back at myself from the future, and think of it as an action due to youth?

…Still, when the time leap is released, the present time always continues to move forward.

That is the best proof that I have, that I never give up on Hiiragi-chan and continue to do my best.

I can’t waste it. While aiming for a happy ending, I aimed to become an elite employee and put effort into rebuilding the failing company. I can’t waste all the effort that I’ve put in so far.

“I can’t give up, I have to keep trying.”

“Well said, Nii-san. Let’s retry it.”

Sana handed me the controller.