At this time, it was a relatively deserted coffee shop.

The rich aroma of coffee wafts through the shop, and the warm heat greets you, diffusing in this small coffee shop, briefly dispelling the cold of winter.

Aono didn't hesitate to look at the corner of the coffee shop, and walked towards it.

Sure enough, just as the vague traces he had noticed along the way had indicated, a familiar and strange person was sitting in that seat.

Two cups of hot coffee were placed on the table, as if waiting for another person to arrive.

In fact, it is exactly what it is.

"Aono-kun, you're here."

The person sitting in the seat was none other than Yuki Hino, who was anxiously looking for by Ayaka Hino.

It's just that his state at the moment is not the same as what Aono thinks.

Aono walked to the side and sat directly across from him, carefully observing Hino Yuki in front of him.

Hino's clothes are neat, there are not too many messy folds, and it doesn't look like it's been through a battle.

As far as his appearance at the moment is concerned, there is no difference between him and the ordinary guests around him.

And the reason why Yuki Hino is "familiar and unfamiliar" is because the temperament he shows now is quite different from the Yuki Hino that Aono was familiar with before.

The previous Hino Yuki, who occasionally showed a frivolous and arrogant personality, but when he was next to Hino Ayaka or Rumiko Hino, he was still called "well-behaved and obedient", and as a companion of the Tokyo Rangers, he was even more reliable.

But now.

Hino's eyes were lowered and gloomy, seemingly dim, but he could see the branches of countless branches in them.

Colorful colors are hidden in that black.

"Colorful black" - this is probably the only word that can be described.

Just for a moment, Aono seemed to see many, many chaotic pictures from those eyes, but in the next moment, those pictures all dissipated, as if those reflections were just Aono's hallucinations.

The most important thing is that he has that kind of temperament, calm and indifferent...... It's a bit similar to the previous Aono.

If I had to find an adjective to describe Hino's temperament, it would probably be......

Peace?

There was nothing else to ask for, and nothing could affect him.

And there is also a very strange feeling, that is, all this, Hino Yukito seems to have rehearsed and drilled countless times in advance, and everything is extremely skillful.

In other words, there is a feeling that "it should be this way" or "it is meant to be this way".

To be honest, Aono doesn't like this "king" feeling very much, and can even be called "disgusted".

What is fate!

"I knew that if it was Aono-kun, I would definitely be able to find the hint I left behind."

Hino Yuki spoke slowly, picked up the coffee in the teacup, and took a sip.

Aono still didn't speak, just looked at Hino lightly.

There was a slight chill in his gaze.

He could feel that Yuki Hino's personality had undergone some indescribable change.

"No, maybe the current Yuki Hino is no longer Yuki Hino. ’

Thinking of the recent "Akiko Ishiyama", it is difficult for Aono not to have doubts about the current Yuki Hino.

"No, I'm not a 'carrier' thing, and I'm not a monster from the inner world."

As if seeing through Aono's thoughts, Hino smiled dumbly and shook his head slightly.

"Of course, the 'carrier' will not realize that he has become a 'carrier' unless he is dying, and my self-defense has no value."

"But Aono-kun, I still ask you to believe that I am Yuki Hino."

Hino's eyes still didn't show much emotion, just calmly narrated, as if talking about something that didn't matter to him.

But there was a power in his words that could be trusted, and Aono's intuition believed what he said - even intuition sometimes deceives, but at least for now, just believe him, he is still Hino, right?

"As for why I became like this, and why I chose to flee from my mother and sister, I will explain it to you."

"But because of time constraints, I'll make a long story as short as I can."

Aono: "I'd like to hear about it." ”

So, Yuki Hino explained the reason for all this in as short a sentence as possible.

As is described, Hino was an "ordinary person" with no extraordinary talents and abilities until his junior high school days, and he naturally had thoughts of envying his sister, mother, and other transcendent beings, and was puzzled by the fact that his family was glad that he did not have extraordinary abilities.

It's just that soon, Yuki Hino understood.

On his birthday, without warning, he awakened his supernatural abilities—foreseeing the future and enchantment.

The latter is an ability that has been passed down for a long time by the Hino family, a family of onmyoji, and Hino Ayaka has it, while Hino Rumiko inherits the power of ice.

The former had a huge impact on Yuki Hino, and the direct consequence was ....... He's crazy.

With the help of Akiko Ishiyama, his crazy consciousness is put back together.

But he had forgotten the first images he had seen that had driven him insane—perhaps out of a physiological protective instinct.

And the personality has changed drastically as a result.

"That is, under the special stimulus, you finally remember those memories."

"So decided to get rid of the seal? Away from your family? ”

Aono frowned.

If that's all there is to it, it's not a reasonable explanation at all.

The key to this should be, what will be the pictures that make Yuki Hino go crazy directly?

"I saw ...... Doomsday. ”

Hino Yuki raised his head, his eyes dark and deep, and with a despair that was so thick that he couldn't dissolve.

Said in a slightly hoarse tone.

"With the continuous emergence of extraordinary powers in the surface world, my ability to foresee is getting stronger and stronger, so my mother-sama chose to seal my ability to a certain extent."

"Knowing the future will make it difficult for my brain to receive so much information, and it will also consume my life, and I know that they are for my good."

"But in that dream, I saw again the images that I should have forgotten."

"Almost impossible to change...... Doomsday. ”

Hino's tone was extremely certain, and the emotions on her body finally changed from "peace of mind" to "despair" and "powerlessness".

The man even sobbed lowly, tears streaming uncontrollably from his eyes and across his cheeks.

It was as if his soul had been sucked out of his body, and all that remained was a burned-out residue.

One can imagine the extent of his despair.

"Can't really be changed?"

Aono paused, even though he never believed in the existence of anything that could not be changed, and even scoffed at this statement, his opinion had always been "never predestined!" ”

But as far as Hino's despair at the moment is concerned, it proves that he has done everything in his power to find the kind of possible future, but ...... He never found it.

"Almost."

Hino Yuki wiped the corners of his eyes and quickly adjusted his state, even if the words were still very nasal, but at least he returned to his previous state.

- Now that I think about it, it may have been a kind of hypnosis that Hino Yuki inflicted on himself, as long as he always maintained that "peace of mind" emotion, he would not be overwhelmed by the surging tide of despair in his heart.

"I'm constantly searching, I'm constantly trying...... But no matter what, the end will come. “

"It's just a matter of time."

Hino said hoarsely, "I've really been looking for that kind of future, but I can't find it. ”

"It was only in a very short moment, on a fork that was too small to be smaller, that I saw a little bit of hope."

"That time, we almost stopped everything."

“...... We? ”

Aono captures a key word in Hino's words, and from this he thinks more about it.

"Yes, that's us."

Hino nodded earnestly.

"You have your hand in any kind of future that delays the end as much as possible."

"In comparison, I only played a small role in it."

At this time, Hino Yuki stared at Aono with burning eyes, and seemed to regard him as the last straw to save his life.

That kind of fanaticism and blind trust may be more serious than Aono's little fan brother Katagiri Yan, at least to the extent of Taiichi Kaneshiro.

Before today, Hino had never shown this attitude, most likely because he saw many possibilities for the future, and finally saw Aono as the only hope.

To be honest, Yuki Hino's trust is also a heavy pressure for Aono.

Aono's instincts told him that from the beginning until now, Hino Yuki has not spoken a word, all words from the heart.

But even if he was involved in the incident, did he just "almost stop everything"?

"Aono-kun, I believe that you are unique, special, and have the possibility of 'creating miracles', and I have seen that happen countless times."

Yuki Hino continued.

The blazing eyes seemed to be able to see Aono's skin burn directly.

"Even if I haven't found the only bright future yet, if it were you, I would be able to make a miracle, right?"

The pressure on Aono's back became even heavier.

Speaking of which, he's always been the kind of person who isn't very good at responding to other people's expectations, and that's been the case since he was in Aoyama Hospital.

So if you want to find a word to describe his current mood, maybe it is "embarrassed" or something.

'It's inexplicable......

Aono sighed.

He was supposed to go home with Kanda Yukie after participating in Rumiko Hino's engagement in a good way, reading books, exercising and exercising like before, and then going to bed according to the exact schedule and resting time, and then preparing a rich breakfast for the little girl the next day, even if there are occasional special incidents, he will be notified to deal with them temporarily, but that is still within the scope of daily life, and it can be solved without too much effort.

But it was in such a daily routine that he was unsuspecting and heard the news about the "end times" from Yuki Hino.

No matter how you look at it, it's just too inexplicable.

But to Aono's own surprise, this feeling is not too bad.

Speaking of which, Aono has always been in this situation where his daily life has been disrupted.

That's it from the beginning.

He had long been accustomed to such a life.

It's better to say, if there were no such and such accidents, Qingye would not be used to it, right?

It was this accident, a little bigger, that's all.

Feeling the blood in his veins that seemed to be slightly ironed, Aono asked Hino Yuki.

"So, what do you see as the end times?"

Hino had long expected Aono to ask such a question.

"The black fog descended, the demons danced, the waves surged, and Tokyo fell."

In four short words, Hino describes what he saw.

"Oh no, not just Tokyo, to be exact."

"Rather...... The whole world, but the only thing I can see in the future is Tokyo. ”

He laughed miserably.

"Black Mist?"

Aono's expression was stunned for a moment, "You mean...... Lost in the fog? ”

If the black fog in Hino's mouth doesn't mean the kind of ability used by Aono, then it can only refer to the kind of "lost fog".

But in fact, after the arrival of winter, the Lost Fog did not appear again and again as before, and the frequency of its appearance was greatly reduced - which is why Aono was relatively idle during this time.

The Fog of Loss seemed to have vanished, so within the Tokyo Rangers, they also lowered their danger rating by several notches.

They are no longer valued as much as they were at the beginning.

However, according to what Hino Yuki is saying now.

That "disappearing" is probably an illusion in order to lower people's vigilance and to accumulate strength and wait for a perfect moment.

It is also possible that due to the events of the ancient civilization, the corrective power of the surface world was temporarily strengthened.

The Lost Mist does not intend to touch its head at such a time, so it lies dormant for the time being.

Whatever the reason, after listening to Yuki Hino's words, Aono felt that his credibility had increased.

Because the Lost Mist does have that ability.

It can be a gateway to the world of the surface and the world of the lost, and even more seriously, it can even lead directly to the inner world.

It can be expected that if that kind of thing really happens, it will definitely deal a devastating blow to the existing human society.

As for the "rolling waves", it is more likely to herald a terrible future.

As we all know, Japan is an island nation.

What if all the surrounding water was pouring up on this island......

Aono fell silent.

That kind of scene is indeed a scene of complete apocalypse.

Even Aono can't compete with the power of nature, and at most protecting the people around him is already the limit of what he can do.

"Actually, none of those are the scariest."

Hino's smile became more and more bitter - Aono was just imagining, but he could really see the pictures of the end of the world.

"The most terrible apocalypse I've ever seen is when even death becomes a luxury."