Chapter 47 - Zero’s Melody
Volume 3, Resonance 6, Part 5
Novel Title: 共鳴熱情 オメガバース (Resonance Passion: Omegaverse)
Author：岩本薫 (Iwamoto Kaoru)
Illustrator：蓮川愛 (Hasukawa Ai)
Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)
Protagonists: MC- 遠峰一紗 (Toomine Kazusa), Lemur & ML- ゼロ (Zero)
*Moved from knoxt.space, the original site of translation.*
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He pressed the end call button. In his heart, he apologised; (I’m sorry, Mom.)
―――...just focus on your work. You’ve got an important job after all… saving lives
His mother’s words echoed in his mind.
His parents had worked themselves to the bone so that he could become a doctor. They had even told him not to waste time working part-time jobs, so he could focus on his studies.
Yet here he was, instead of saving lives, at the age of thirty, despised by colleagues a decade younger, being bullied and having garbage stuffed into his locker.
He felt so pathetic that tears welled up.
“…Why…?”
Tears began to fall, one after another. He hadn’t cried since the day he had fallen into such despair that he’d wanted to die.
There were plenty of people in far worse situations than him. He was one of the lucky ones. He had far more hope now than when he had once tried to jump off a rooftop.
Even though he knew that, the tears wouldn’t stop.
“Ugh… kuh… ugh…”
He stood there crying quietly for several minutes. When the tears finally began to subside, Kazusa took off his glasses, wiped his eyes, and sniffled. After taking a deep breath, he opened the door to the backroom and sluggishly walked out.
Dragging his left leg and walking with his head down, Kazusa was startled when someone called out, “Hey,” from ahead. He lifted his head, recognizing the familiar heterochromatic eyes.
“Zero?”
Kazusa had been slumped over the entire time, so he hadn’t noticed Zero walking toward him.
“O-Oh, good evening.”
Zero stared intently at Kazusa’s face as he greeted him.
(...This is bad. My eyes are probably swollen.)
In the instant Kazusa tried to adjust his glasses to hide his face, Zero said, "You look pale," which made him flinch.
“And it seems you were dragging your left leg.”
“Ah… I just twisted it a bit. But it’s a light one, so I’m fine.”
“Is that true?”
“Are you doubting the opinion of a former orthopaedic surgeon?”
Kazusa tried to brush it off with a joke, but Zero wasn’t having any of it. Avoiding Zero’s gaze, which seemed to be probing for the truth, Kazusa’s back grew tense. His hands also became sweaty.
(I can’t take this anymore…)
Desperate to escape the silent interrogation, Kazusa opened his mouth.
“Um, if you’ll excuse m—”
“―Are you done for the day?”
Before he could finish, Zero interrupted him with a question. Reflexively, Kazusa answered, “Ah, yes.”
“I see. I’m done too, so wait here.”
“Huh?”
Before Kazusa could clarify, Zero had already started walking away. Kazusa watched him go in a daze as Zero’s back receded toward the office.
"Wait… here?"
Kazusa muttered to himself suspiciously, just as a holographic giraffe slowly crossed his path.
***
Zero returned in less than three minutes.
“Let’s go.”
“O-okay.”
Without giving Kazusa the chance to ask where they were going, Zero started walking ahead. Given their boss-employee relationship, Kazusa had no choice but to follow silently.
They both got into the elevator and exited on the seventh floor. Kazusa followed Zero into room 701, lifting his foot over the threshold.
“...Pardon my intrusion.”
It was Kazusa’s third time entering room 701.
The tasteful interior remained the same, with lighting that wasn’t too bright nor too dim. If not for the secret weighing on his chest, it would have been a comfortable space...
“Sit wherever you like. I’ll make some drinks.”
Just like last time, Zero said the same thing. This time, Kazusa obediently replied, “Okay,” and sat down on the leather sofa. Feeling restless, he squirmed in his seat.
(...Are we going to continue the interrogation in this new setting?)
Even if that were the case, Kazusa had no intention of revealing the truth. Though the matter of the pouch and garbage could be presumed innocent. It was still true that the Lycaon had tripped him, causing him to fall and injure his knee. If Zero found out about that, he would probably expel Lycaon for real this time... Kazusa couldn’t let that happen.
As he wrestled with his thoughts, Zero returned, carrying two glass cups of herb tea with honey—just like the last time. He placed one in front of Kazusa on the coffee table and the other by the armchair. Up until this point, it was the same routine, but then something different happened.
Instead of sitting in the armchair, Zero walked over to the piano.
(Huh?)
Kazusa was startled by the unexpected action.
―――We haven’t heard any of it.
―――Serval said they’ve never heard you play the piano.
―――...It’s been a long time since I touched it.
As Kazusa recalled his conversation with Serval and his previous exchanges with Zero, his heart began to race.
(Could it be... Is he going to play?)
With his heart pounding, Kazusa watched closely as Zero pulled out the piano bench and sat down. He lifted the lid, revealing the keys. The white keys weren’t pure white; they had yellowed slightly. They were probably made of ivory. Zero stared at the keyboard for a moment in silence before slowly placing one hand on the keys and playing a few notes experimentally—plonk, plonk.
"Seems like it's quite out of tune..."
Zero muttered softly to himself before placing both hands on the keys. His long, well-shaped fingers glided smoothly over the keys, and a melody began to flow.
Even though he had said he hadn’t played in a long time, there was no sign of hesitation in his moves. He began playing so naturally that, at first, it didn’t quite register with Kazusa. But gradually, the realisation dawned—he was listening to the legendary performance of Zero.
Contrary to his glamorous appearance, Zero’s melody was gentle. Kazusa hadn’t heard the tune before, so it might have been an original composition. The melody was soft, and even the sound of the piano itself was warm. It was like a human-like warmth.
Kazusa closed his eyes and surrendered completely to the music Zero was weaving. He felt he could appreciate the piece even more this way.
The melody that entered his ears gently wrapped around his heart, slowly dissolving the anxiety, the feelings of misery, and the frustration he had toward himself that had been nesting inside his chest.
(It’s soaking into me...)
Before he knew it, a tear had rolled down his cheek.
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*Translator’s Note: Just to make it clear, I’m aware that some of the words in the recollection might not tally with previous chapters. I have no time to look back on previous chapters, so pardon me for that and just ignore it, please. As long as the storyline, moving forward, is smooth, I hope it won’t be too much of a problem. Thank you for your understanding. -K
Next update: 2025.08.02
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