“Y-yes. Jinba helped me out, so…”
“Apparently they took into account the influence of the magic sword. He’s out on parole, but I’m glad that he gets to work in the cafe like this!”
Ehn’s childhood friend who once took a magic sword and went wild in an incident that involved both Ehn and the cafe… Cross.
They heard he was taken by the guards and questioned after being defeated by Yuugo and Melt, but they did not expect him to be out so soon.
But the real culprit behind the incident, Neid, was also apprehended, and considering that the influence of the magic sword warped his mind, it was clear there were unavoidable circumstances at play.
It seemed Jinba, who knew what happened, vouched for him, to which Yuugo was grateful. Cross then grabbed his hand strongly, and looked at his surprised face.
“Hum, I know this is sudden, and it may be a bother, but… I’m really grateful. Thanks for stopping me…!”
Cross grabbed Yuugo’s hand gradually stronger.
Yuugo felt he was doing that because of the intensity of the emotions inside him, as he continued.
“The magic sword made me go crazy, but I still hurt a lot of people and tried to put my hands on a dear friend. If you weren’t there, I think I would’ve even killed people. But I didn’t, because you stopped me. Thank you so much…!!”
“Cross…”
Tears welled up in his eyes, and it was clear he understood the gravity of his crimes.
He did not kill anyone, but he hurt a lot of people to get Ehn to come back, cut his other childhood friend Delta when his crimes were discovered, and tried to destroy the cafe.
If Yuugo and Melt were a little late… He would have done things he could never take back.
Had that happened, he would not be able to work with his childhood friend, and face forward to strive to lead a new life. This was due to Yuugo and Melt, who responded after being thanked.
“You can’t erase what happened, and I’m sure it’s still tough for you, but if you understand the gravity of what you did, I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
“I’m rooting for you. Don’t betray their hopes.”
“Yes, of course… Sorry, I’m being called. We’ll talk again later.”
It was a short conversation, but it was clear Cross was doing his best to turn a new leaf.
He was called by a posh looking middle-aged man, and Melt asked Ehn a question as she watched him leave.
“Ehn, who is the man calling him? They’re talking…”
“That’s his probation officer. He drops by once in a while to check up on him. His name is… Garland, I think.”
“Eh… So he really isn’t completely off the hook yet.”
“Of course. But Cross will be fine. He has friends that support him.”
He was out on probation, but he was not completely done paying for his crimes.
The fact that a guard came by to watch him was proof of that, but Cross should be fine.
As they spoke, Mary, who had been silently listening, asked a question.
“Hey… Is that guy a criminal too?”
“…Yes, that’s right. Not just Cross, I have a record too. It’s not something I say proudly though.”
Said Ehn with an awkward smile, and Mary’s mouth was shut tight.
Then Raiha interjected.
“Mary, do you think Black Veil should purge the people here too?”
“…I dunno. But he doesn’t overlook people who committed crimes, so…”
“Maybe. But even if Black Veil is just, I don’t think that gives him the right to condemn others.”
Said Raiha, somewhat hesitantly.
Mary said nothing in return, so she continued.
“Mary, I think it’s natural for you to throw your anger towards the one who took your mother’s life. But I think it’s wrong for Black Veil to use that anger as a reason to take someone’s life. Your anger is your own. If you can’t take vengeance without relying on Black Veil… Then like Ryuuga said, isn’t that a past that you can’t abandon? I think so.”
“…”
“…I know it might sound presumptuous coming from someone with a record, but I think people tend to stumble and fall. But a lot of people get back up. I think what Black Veil is doing is taking the future away from those people.”
Mary listened to Raiha and Ehn, and faced down without saying a word.
She was mulling over it in her own way, they thought, and…
“Yuugo! Sorry I’m late!”
“Ah, Jinba. Don’t worry. Did you find something about the Friends of the Night Society?”
“That group… Has really taken a turn.”
Jinba ran towards the others out of breath, and with a grave expression.
They silently but implicitly asked him what he meant, and he explained what just happened.
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Weird, the faiz direct to video movie is the 20th anniversary one, not the 10th…
Maybe it’s a reference to OOO 10th? The one where Eiji come back but not quite?