Crossover anime, starting with Hachiman Hikigaya replacing Subaru Natsuki!

40. Crusch: ?

"A pillar of the nation, a pillar supporting the sky! This is the kind of talent the kingdom needs most. Regardless of who wins in the end, if Hachiman doesn't mind, I will definitely invite him to assist the new king!"

Felt looked at the swordsman who was relentlessly insisting on supporting her as the chosen one while praising his rival, and was very puzzled. "Hey! He may be talented, but isn't he Emilia's ally? Why do you seem so happy about it?"

Reinhard gave a gentle, humble smile and offered his answer to the monarch he had chosen without a trace of impatience: "Lord Felt, the royal selection is a competition, not a bloodbath. Healthy competition is not about insulting the other's soul. After the victory or defeat, we can still shake hands and make peace."

"Furthermore... even if it is a true enemy, if the other party is diligent, responsible, and exceptionally talented, the facts should be respected."

Ferut ignored his sermon and made a face in a rather wicked way.

"Roswaal is gone."

"He went to collect the money and also made a brief appearance in the village to handle some cleanup work."

"In the living room, Emilia, who always appeared optimistic, was silent at this moment. A matter that she usually tried to hide was dug out by Hachiman Hikigaya, and it hung sharply in his heart."

"She was certainly aware of how humiliating it would be to appear in the capital without an entourage, and how severe the damage to her reputation would be."

"It was a mixture of cautiousness, like a child looking at their parents who promised to take them to the amusement park with anticipation and excitement, and a little disbelief."

""Hachiman...""

"Amelia's soft, sweet voice rang out as she eagerly grabbed the hem of the man's robe, her breathing slightly rapid: 'Would someone really be willing to follow me?'"

"At that moment, Hachiman Hikigaya's heart melted. He managed to look away with great difficulty and resist the urge to pat the girl's head."

"Hehe, you're a natural at acting cute, not bad, Lia. Keep it up and take down Rem!"

Parker punched and kicked the air, "Ugh, I really don't want to marry you off, but we love each other, and this kid can really protect you, so I can feel a little more at ease."

"Ugh..." Emilia's eyes were brimming with tears. She looked down at the ground helplessly and retreated into a quieter alley, her face slightly flushed.

As someone who experienced it firsthand, Emilia was so innocent that she wouldn't think too much about anything. But now, as an observer, she has the added benefit of Parker's knowledgeable explanations and supplementary information.

The young girl, inexperienced in such matters, blushed even at the base of her ears.

On the other side, Yukino Yukinoshita tilted her head blankly, her eyes lifeless and devoid of light.

What exactly was I so smug about before?

What does it mean to act cute or coquettish?

That's what you call being cute!

Hachiman Hikigaya, engrossed in watching the video, was oblivious to Yukino Yukinoshita's constant attention; he was genuinely grieving for Emilia.

"Even if we manage to come up with a solution, it's just a last resort, only slightly better than nothing... Sigh."

""……some.""

Hachiman Hikigaya avoided Emilia's gaze; his heart was heavy.

"Then I'll go prepare."

"His departing figure seemed to be carrying an extraordinary pressure."

After persuading Emilia to stay at the mansion, Rem followed closely behind, watching Hachiman Hikigaya's every move.

"Hachiman Hikigaya glanced at her but didn't send her away."

"Having received the money from Roswaal, Hachiman Hikigaya took out a portion and returned to the village with Rem. The people there had mostly recovered and were relatively calm."

He gathered several men who had been to the capital, handed them gold coins, and said earnestly, "By order of Earl Roswaal, I require you to go to the capital and await further instructions until the Royal Selection begins. Are you willing to undertake this mission?"

"These men were all saved by Emilia at the last minute last night. Their loyalty is obvious to all. They immediately nodded in agreement."

"Very good. Now that you've arrived in the capital, your tasks for the time being are quite simple."

"Hachiman Hikigaya breathed a sigh of relief and gave his instructions carefully."

"Take the money, use any means necessary, spread my name as widely as possible, and introduce my achievements and background to the outside world."

He once found Elsa, the bloodthirsty killer who had infiltrated the royal capital, and assisted the swordsman Reinhard in capturing her;

The guest invited by Roswaal quelled the monster riot in Roswaal's territory, with no civilians killed and almost no resources damaged;

Before traveling to the Kingdom of Lugunica, he had two noble friends and a friend with chivalrous virtues. He had served as an official in his hometown, was well-read, disliked tedious formalities, and understood but relatively disregarded noble etiquette.

"With this kind of introduction, can we spread this information throughout the capital as quickly as possible, from nobles to commoners?"

After hearing this, the men didn't doubt its truth at all. They exchanged glances, trembling with excitement, as if they wanted to swear an oath: "Yes, as you wish, we will definitely do it!"

"The esteemed lord they revere is so noble, in terms of both his distinguished background and his actual achievements, that he is in no way inferior to any nobleman or knight!"

"The men, carrying their money, marched proudly to the capital, their backs ramrod straight, for their backer was such a powerful lord!"

"Hachiman Hikigaya actually considered whether to exaggerate even more, but after thinking it over, he decided against it. The protection of this world is a bit unreasonable. If he encountered someone who could discern the lies, he would be ruined."

"What I am saying now is all well thought out, the absolute truth, and there is nothing false about it."

"Assisting in capturing the Gut Hunter and quelling the monster invasion was just a clever exaggeration of his involvement, but it did indeed happen."

"Two aristocratic friends, Yukino's father is a prefectural assemblyman, and Yukino and Haruno are indeed modern-day aristocrats. Besides, is it wrong to say that Hayama Hayato is comparable to a knight? His virtues are beyond reproach!"

"Being an official, for a high school student, means wielding the power to oversee the school festival. Isn't that just being a bureaucrat within the high school? What's wrong with that?"

"You've read a lot of books, especially light novels."

"Who doesn't know aristocratic etiquette these days? The aristocratic manners depicted are largely based on historical research!"

"Today is the day God Jehovah has come, and these words are not a single lie, there is no flaw in them!"

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41. Better to have too much than too little

Hachiman Hikigaya has many ideas. As a modern person, he has a different way of thinking and perspective than people in this world. Even though he is just a high school student, he knows some business operation models.

Unfortunately, time and manpower limited him. The King and the Selection were not far away, and dealing with the followers was much more important than making money. As for recruiting outsiders... Anastasia was a business genius, not a villager from Roswaal's territory. It would not be surprising if she were infiltrated and plagiarized at any time, which would mean that she would end up funding the other party instead.

Therefore, he can only take it slowly.

"Oh... I accidentally overlooked that. Indeed, he has to solve the problem of his followers before he can make money. He's clearly exhausted, yet he can still maintain such rationality... Where did this guy come from?"

Anastasia first gave a couple of displeased "hmm" sounds, then put on an innocent expression, "Hmm, you made me mistakenly think he had some new way to make money, so—as his apology, I shamelessly plagiarized his method of increasing sales by exaggerating and highlighting the strengths while downplaying the weaknesses of a product!"

"Once this imaginative Hachiman-kun actually arrives, I'll offer my thanks and best wishes, hehe~"

Unlike Anastasia, who focused on marketing strategies, the people on Earth mostly looked astonished, trying to figure out Hachiman Hikigaya's ultimate goal.

"I see!"

"By spreading his message in the capital, he created a high-class identity for himself that was both respectable in terms of status and achievements, leaving a prior impression on the Sages' Guild, nobles, knights, and other members of the Royal Chosen faction as [Hachiman Hikigaya ≈ Noble ≈ Knight]."

"I don't expect them to have a deep impression. As long as they have a vague basic impression of Hachiman Hikigaya, and their subconscious is subtly embellished by the villagers' deliberate propaganda, and they vaguely remember this chain of logic that equates them, and acknowledge that Hachiman Hikigaya is someone who is qualified to stand on the same stage as them, that would already be a wonderful victory."

"On the day the royal selection begins, we will openly declare that Hachiman Hikigaya has sworn allegiance to Emilia, becoming her most loyal knight and her closest attendant..."

"Although I am still no match for Julius and his three deeply rooted powerhouses, at least as an ordinary nobleman and ordinary knight who is able to fight against the Gut Hunter and has a relationship with the Sword Saint Reinhard, I am qualified to compete with Julius and the others!"

"Following Emilia in this position certainly won't add any extra prestige to her, but—compared to Emilia being all alone, filling the vacancy of 'Emilia's Attendant' will prevent her from being shamefully disgraced during the royal selection..."

"To be able to achieve this level is actually the best surprise for the extremely distorted Emilia faction!"

Shirogane Miyuki's analysis is well-reasoned, supported by evidence, and easy to understand.

Shirogane Kei was still puzzled. "If that's the case, then wasn't it done very well? Why is Hachiman-senpai still sighing and looking so disgusted with himself?"

“People are different, Xiao Gui.”

Shirogane Miyuki's tone went beyond mere praise and agreement; he shook his head in awe, his words carrying a tone that was more akin to wistful admiration.

"Hachiman did a very good job, but he felt he hadn't done it perfectly, and..."

"and?"

The mystery of Hachiman Hikigaya's dissatisfaction with himself was revealed by Miyuki Shirogane himself, before Shirogane could explain it.

"Is Hachiman going to swear allegiance to Lady Emilia?"

"Witnessing the man's entire operation and deducing his goal, Rem felt a surge of joy in her heart. No one but herself could imagine the ecstasy beneath that forcibly calm body."

"Before this, no matter how close Hachiman Hikigaya was to Emilia, he could always back off. But once Emilia's identity as a 'person at all times' was confirmed, he could no longer escape."

"Hachiman Hikigaya let out a long sigh. He didn't dare to look at Rem. He rubbed his eyes, his voice bitter. His confidence with Roswaal was all an act. The weight of responsibility on his shoulders was immense."

"Yes... I was just a charlatan, no tiger wanted to come, so this shameless monkey took advantage of the situation... Hehe."

"At that moment, the image of his most respected teacher flashed through Hachiman Hikigaya's mind."

"Although both teachers acted on their own initiative with the intention of 'doing it for your own good,' at least Hiratsuka-sensei let him know that he had joined the Service Club, making everything clear to him."

"And now, this useless student is deceiving Emilia by acting on his own initiative, waiting until things have come to a head and it's too late to take back what he's done before he tells Emilia about these plans."

"I'm worried, Rem... Will Emilia accept me as her ally? This is a connection that will bind us for life; she needs a strong and capable ally who can overcome all obstacles... I have no confidence in what I can do."

"My opponents are the knights who have reached the pinnacle of this kingdom. I will face them head-on... I will not underestimate myself, but this level of confrontation is unprecedented."

"If I can't help Emilia, if I embarrass her later, if I even make things worse... I still have to do it, I must do it, even if it displeases Emilia. She needs a follower, otherwise, for her, the royal selection is already over before it even begins!"

"Hachiman Hikigaya looked up at the roof, still looking dejected, but after speaking his mind, his burden was noticeably lighter."

"Alright, I'll keep it from Emilia for now—whether or not to report it is up to you, Rem."

He gave a sly smile, as if trying to shift the blame onto the well-behaved girl.

"However, the next second, Hachiman Hikigaya's smile froze completely, and his eyes went blank."

"Rem had somehow appeared behind him, and her breasts, which were even more developed than Emilia's, quietly squeezed into Hachiman Hikigaya's upward-looking gaze."

"A pair of slender, fair hands, without prior notice, touched his shoulders, gentle and light, each movement skillful and soft, tapping and kneading his stiff shoulders, bringing with it the unique fragrance of a maid."

"Why would Hachiman belittle himself like that?"

"With her head down, Rem's face was full of heartfelt confusion as she stared at Hachiman Hikigaya's face, her eyes containing emotions that Hachiman Hikigaya dared not probing."

"Rem is so happy, so very happy... Rem can work with Hachiman."

"You won't leave here, we can stay together forever, we won't be separated... With Hachiman's assistance, Lady Emilia has nothing to fear. Hachiman is absolutely no less than any knight—no, he's more outstanding and special than anyone else!"

"Isn't it Emilia's good fortune to have Hachiman's follower?"