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The Puzzled Weakling Hero
"Heh Heh, do you still think you can stop me wounded like that?"
"Evil is about to rule the world. Give up, weakling."
"Hmph."
"Oh? Still resisting, even now?"
"Well, since you put it that way... let me show you how a weakling becomes a hero!"
Isaki's eyes were glued to the TV screen, the ever-shifting light casting a pale glow across his face.
This was his favorite hero show, where the protagonist never gave up. No matter how many times the villains knocked them down they always came back and won in the end. Isaki admired those heroes deeply, perhaps because that kind of "hero" was something someone like him, known to everyone as "Weakling Isaki," could never be.
"Pluck up the courage and give it a try."
That was what the grown-ups always told Isaki.
But the thing was... little Isaki had no idea how you were supposed to "pluck up" courage.
Where did it come from? What did it even look like?
Just walking down the street on an ordinary day, he might tremble at the flap of a passing bird. Taking a rest in the shade, he'd shiver when a fruit suddenly dropped from above.
...
Things like that happened all the time.
Isaki's five older siblings had already found their footing in fields they loved. As the youngest, he had the privilege of being a late bloomer, and the grown-ups were ,understanding of his timid nature. He could do nothing, hide at home, and just wait each day for his favorite hero show to come on. Would it really matter if "Weakling Isaki" lived an unremarkable, aimless life? After all, wasn't it enough to have the TV heroes keep him company through life?
Was that really... enough?
As the familiar ending theme of his hero show began to play, the quiet certainty in Isaki's heart suddenly shifted into a question.
Was it because the lyrics went, "No weakling stays that way for long. Even a bug can still grow strong. With heart held high and spirit true, the hero's path is open to you"?
Isaki wasn't quite sure.
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