Why wasn't I the one who got the male lead's script?

The fact that she fell asleep in this place was probably a manifestation of the world's correction power that automatically avoided paradoxes.

Similarly, they cannot be observed by the natives of this world for the time being until one of them moves away from the other - or until both of them disappear together.

If the power of correction could be personified, then this guy must be going to great lengths to prevent the world from falling into chaos.

However, if he forcibly awakens Rio Futaba of this time and space and tells her his identity, then the conditions for satisfying the paradox will be met - he will be erased by the correction force in the most fundamental way.

She just calmly outlined the extension of this possibility in her mind, without any sense of emptiness or even a little fear that she was about to disappear from this world.

She was like a critically ill patient on her deathbed, preparing to face her end serenely and peacefully.

But at a certain point, she raised her head and cast her gaze at the corner ten meters away.

A black-haired boy wearing glasses ran towards him.

Unlike the passers-by who didn't even notice his presence, he came straight towards her without any deviation.

But there was no surprise in the woman's eyes. It was as if she had expected the other party to come. She seemed calm and composed.

"You came."

Her tone was like greeting an old friend who hadn't seen her for a while, simple and natural.

"I knew you would be here."

"Huh... As expected, it's about this time."

The black-haired boy ran to her and fearlessly stepped into the equally distorted space beside the woman. He adjusted his breathing, then looked directly into the woman's eyes and curled his lips.

“…The day I first met you as a junior high school student as a time traveler.”

Behind him, outside the distorted space and time, a black-haired boy in sportswear and glasses just turned and left.

Hoshimi certainly wouldn't forget the day he saw Futaba from the past while traveling through time.

"...Actually, that was the day I found out you'd time-traveled."

Futaba raised her eyebrows slightly and responded to the boy's words in a normal manner.

This time and place are the most special to her.

"You don't think your disguise is that good, do you? To be honest, it's clear at a glance."

"So you knew from the beginning that I had traveled back in time and met you before... then this was obviously a disguise you prepared for me."

"Well, I knew that from the beginning."

Futaba selectively ignored Hoshimi's subsequent complaints and just nodded lightly.

"But the world's power of correction seems to only take effect when the truth is revealed. Even though I vaguely guessed the identity of the person I met that day, I never said it out loud. It seems that my silence over the years has paid off unexpectedly."

"It's better to say that this is the inevitable result of time travel... After all, time travel can reverse cause and effect."

"I'm a little surprised that you would say such a thing."

[Futaba Line] Destiny: Chapter 7: The Disappearance of Futaba Rio (Part 4)

"There are many things that will surprise you, put those aside for now-"

Xingjian took a small step forward, not caring at all about the distorted space around him, which looked like it was about to collapse.

He extended his hand to the woman sitting at the other end of the bench.

"Don't do this, Futaba."

The boy's tone was calm, but it also revealed an unprecedented firmness and unquestionableness.

"........."

Faced with the boy's invitation that seemed to want to save her from this collapsing space, Futaba simply withdrew her gaze and turned to look at the face of the gray-haired girl sleeping beside her.

“This is not the first time.”

"...?"

"It's not the first time I've tried to go back and change things."

She chuckled softly, with the corners of her mouth raised in a particularly sarcastic manner.

“But not even one of them succeeded.”

"........."

Faced with something he had never known before, Xingjian could only stand there quietly, staring at Futaba, who was so close to him yet seemed too far away.

"Maybe it's because I experienced time travel with you before, so my physical condition has been slightly affected. I can travel through time after drinking the reagent... although it's not directional."

She quietly and gently touched the face of the girl who was curled up and sleeping beside her. Her movements were gentle and light, as if she was touching an illusion that would shatter at the slightest touch.

“I’ve made subtle changes to a lot of things that might affect the future, trying to change the course of the world – but nothing seems to work.”

Her world hadn't changed at all.

That boy remained seventeen forever.

"...You were buried in a cemetery on the outskirts of our city. For the past ten years, your family has visited you every birthday."

After a brief silence, the gray-haired woman began to talk about her worries that she had never told the boy before.

"After handling the funeral, your sister asked me with tears in her eyes if there was anything you hadn't told your family...but I didn't say anything."

She covered her cheeks with her hands, looking a little tired, as if trying to straighten out her depressed mood, or to hide the expression on her face at the moment.

"I kept all our secrets secret—because I believed you wouldn't leave so easily."

She did not attend the boy's funeral, nor did she witness the body that had lost its soul and warmth. She just studied various materials about time travel day and night.

She was convinced that he would be able to return to his daily life intact, and it would just require some effort on her part.

"—And that's exactly what happened. Before you died, you traveled ten years into the future and met me. It was as if to convince me that my persistence wasn't in vain... But I really can't deceive myself."

The Xing Jianqing she knew had died long ago.

He died in the ground at the age of seventeen, and there was no way he could come back.

"I know what you want to do, and I know why you want to do it, Futaba."

Xingjian, who was finally able to speak out his thoughts, raised his hand, looked at the gray-haired woman and shook his head.

"But the consequences of doing so are not something you can bear."

“…Is there anything I can’t bear?”

Somewhat unexpectedly, Futaba refuted this statement nonchalantly.

"It's nothing more than being wiped out of existence, it's no big deal."

When her fingertips touched the girl's body, memories came flooding back like a tide.

That is the memory of how the world would continue if he were corrected by the correction force.

She knew very well how she would gradually disappear from this world.

"...Everyone will eventually die. Compared to such a painful disappearance, wouldn't it be more bearable to have your existence erased by the world in such an irresistible way?"

fallacy.

This guy is still as good at sophistry as ever.

“…What are you talking about?”

But this time, Xingjian couldn't just sit back and watch her self-deprecating remarks.

"Is this how lightly you take your life?"

"What does that have to do with you? I make my own decisions about my life. I don't need you to tell me what to do."

"Then what does my death have to do with you? If my fate is already determined, what makes you, Futaba, the hero who saves me?!"

——When I realized it, I felt that my emotions were a little out of control.

"………Feel sorry."

Xingjian barely managed to calm himself down, and after realizing that his tone was a bit too harsh, he subconsciously apologized to Futaba.

Futaba, who was frightened by his anger this time, was stunned at first, then turned her head away with mixed emotions, unwilling to make any eye contact with Xingjian again.

"What qualifications do you have...?"

"........."

"It seems that the identity of [friend] will never be enough for me."

Futaba seemed to be a little hurt by what Hoshimi had said earlier, and she pursed her lips and gave a slight wry smile.

"You probably never thought that Futaba ten years later would be upset by such words. She's completely different from the tolerant and reliable friend you remember, right?"

“…No, I didn’t—”

"—Have you ever thought about why I gave you the reagent?"

Then, her sudden words made Xingjian stunned for a moment.

"...?"

"Yes, I have been secretly carrying out plans to change the past... But when you appeared, I thought that perhaps you could do the work that I could not complete for me."

For example, going back to the past to change history, or changing destiny.

"As you can see, ten years later, Futaba Rio is such a sick and almost hopeless person."

I tried my best to help you change the past, so that I wouldn't have to meet you like this in the future.

Xingjian could probably guess what she didn't say.

This is also why his expression gradually became gentler... and also gradually became a little sad.

Everything she did was to prevent them from seeing each other again.

Although Xingjian could also understand how much she wanted to survive.

Just living in a future where she doesn't exist.

"...You've probably already experienced the future after I made my decision. Wouldn't it be nice to just stay in that world?"

Unlike her previous indifference and coldness, her tone this time became much softer, as if she was begging the boy to allow her to do what she wanted, mixed with some hidden emotions.

"If it's a world where you can live safely, I'm willing to be erased—"

"But I don't want to."

[Futaba Line] Destiny: Chapter 8: A World Without Her (Part 1)

Xingjian has been busy solving various incidents recently, but he has also thought about this problem carefully.

What kind of existence is Futaba Rio to him?

Without finding the answer to this question, there is no way to return to normal life.

if it is like this……

"...I don't want to live in a world without Futaba."

The young man uttered these words slowly in a troubled tone, and his genuine feelings made the gray-haired woman in front of him look up in a daze.

But soon, she gritted her teeth as if she had made up her mind and turned her face away.

"...It's okay. When you return to your daily life, all these memories will be gone, so you won't be sad for someone who never existed from the beginning to the end."

"How many times do I have to say this - I don't need or want that kind of future."

The black-haired boy leaned down slightly so that he could look at Futaba who was sitting on the bench at eye level.

"Sacrificing others for a comfortable and stable daily life, and even thinking it's what you deserve, makes me want to vomit just thinking about it."

Although his tone was calm, his expression was restrained and helpless, as if he was trying hard to suppress his grief and anger.

"If you really care about me, please don't do that... Futaba."

Words like begging rarely come out of his mouth.

Futaba, knowing how sincerely Hoshimi is begging her, is in a dilemma, but she still can't find a solution easily.

"...Then tell me what to do."

The strength and indifference she had always pretended to have finally showed signs of collapse at this moment.

"For me—even if you're unhappy, as long as you exist in this world, that's enough! I've been working hard for the past ten years to achieve this goal! What else can I do?!"