Itsuka Shido... was dead?
When Honjou Nia first learned of this news, the first feeling that rose in her heart was doubt.
Was this so cruel April Fool's joke? A trap set by the enemy to shake them? Or maybe a trick ant to deceive the enemy?
But those questions, which were really just self-deception, quickly lost all aning.
What followed was a tiny, desperate hope, like soone clinging to the last straw with all their strength.
It would be fine. That boy would definitely be safe. Didn't he have healing power that could recover even if his chest was torn open? Hadn't he already learned to use the Spirit's power to protect himself? He had gone through so many hardships until now. This ti, surely...
—Itsuka Shido's life signs have stopped.
However, what appeared before her was not the kind of miracle that happened to protagonists in light novels, manga, or ani.
It was sothing quieter. Colder.
A cruel and rciless reality.
Even today, Honjou Nia could still clearly rember how she felt back then.
It was like the bottom of a bucket had broken open. The happiness filling it could not stop leaking away, and in the end, only an empty shell remained.
Itsuka Shido was dead.
Every ti that fact ca back to her mind, the pain in her heart grew a little deeper.
She would never hear that boy's voice again.
She would never see that boy's smile again.
She could no longer tease him, talk to him, or even et him one more ti.
The more she realized that, the more fear she felt.
In the end, sadness and despair filled the empty space in her heart, making her want to scream with all her strength and cry without holding anything back.
And that very feeling beca the fuse that caused even more tragedy.
How painful was it to say goodbye forever to soone important?
Even Nia herself had nearly been unable to accept reality after that blow. Then for those who had spent every day with that boy, the shock they had to bear was probably several tis greater than hers.
No, dozens of tis greater.
Ah, I see.
Looking at her companions, one after another collapsing into despair and going berserk, Nia thought helplessly.
This place was that boy's ho.
Every Spirit here had been connected and gathered together because of him.
Then, the mont that boy died, the thing that connected them also naturally disappeared.
——————————
"...An unfamiliar ceiling."
Staring at the fluorescent light on the ceiling, Honjou Nia instinctively made that comnt.
"Ah... right. I'm now... living on Imouto-chan's airship."
After spacing out for a few seconds, the half-asleep Nia gradually woke up.
One month ago, the Inversed Spirits had nearly flattened all of Tenguu City.
Naturally, Honjou Nia's apartnt had not escaped destruction either.
With no other choice, the now-holess Nia moved into the staff dormitory of Fraxinus EX under Ratatoskr's arrangent.
She took off her pajamas, changed into her clothes, and went to the bathroom to wash up.
"Ah... what an awful face."
After brushing her teeth and washing her face, Nia put on her glasses. Looking at herself in the mirror, she could not help giving a bitter, self-mocking smile.
Should she call it worn out, or loose and dead inside?
Although she had not reached Murasa Reine's level, Nia's current face looked just like a newbie who had stayed up for a whole week to finish a doujin manuscript, finally fallen asleep, then woke up from a nightmare where sothing went wrong at the printing shop.
"Get it together! Get it together!"
Nia slapped her cheeks hard, trying to cheer herself up.
After leaving her room, Nia first went to the staff cafeteria and had breakfast. Then she got up and headed toward the command room at the center of the bridge.
"Good morning, Honjou-san."
On the way, a Fraxinus employee greeted Nia.
"Eh? Good morning... Um?"
Nia greeted him awkwardly.
She did have so impression of this employee, but not enough to rember his na.
"My surna is Awashima. Third-class collection officer. We t once five days ago." (TL:read Mukuro Adult to know this na)
As if he noticed Nia's awkwardness, the other person gave a short self-introduction.
"Ah... Awashima-san. Thank you for your hard work."
"Mm. Honjou-san as well."
After answering politely, Nia watched the employee leave, then awkwardly rubbed her nose.
"Ah... that was embarrassing. There are really a lot of staff on this airship."
There were already over a hundred technicians and regular employees who stayed on the airship long term. If the lower level staff on standby on the ground were included, the number easily passed a thousand.
Honestly, even after living here for almost a month, Nia still barely rembered any faces outside the people in the command room.
"Co to think of it... Kotori-chan seed to rember the faces and nas of every employee under her command. That's amazing."
After muttering in admiration, Nia took a deep breath and walked into the command room.
"Global atmospheric spirit wave concentration ratio detection, progress 3.65%."
"Fifty-sixth Neighboring World coordinate trace beginning,failed, begin executing again."
"Lock spirit wave type range to Class E."
"Reply received from Director Woodman. DEM company acquisition mission complete."
"Beginning contact with ground units. Proceed to recover DEM airships and equipnt placed around the world."
The command room's automatic door opened.
What appeared before Nia's eyes was the Fraxinus crew, excited and focused as if they had been injected with adrenaline.
"Wow..."
Nia let out an unconscious sigh of surprise.
She rembered that, until yesterday, every ti she ca to this command room, the air was always filled with a depressed and worn down mood. Whether it was morale or work efficiency, both had been so low that it was hard to imagine.
(Well, that's only natural.)
Nia thought in her heart.
The reason they had not completely given up before was because they still had one goal supporting them: revenge for their Commander.
But Kotori's subordinates were not the kind of cruel and violent people suited for revenge. So the effect had been small.
Compared to fighting for revenge, the goal Biri-chan gave them yesterday—"return Kotori-chan to normal"—was clearly far better at raising their motivation.
Looking at the brown-haired girl sitting in the commander's seat and operating the computer, Nia took a deep breath, then greeted her in a deliberately casual tone.
"...Morning, Biri-chan. Or should I call you Commander-sama now?"
"...Morning, Nia."
Hearing Nia's voice, Yutsuki raised her head, sighed helplessly, and corrected her.
"Just call the sa as before. Also, I'm not the Commander. I'm only the acting commander."
"Haha~ I know, of course, Biri-chan."
Nia answered with a laugh.
Just yesterday, the girl before Nia had successfully gained command of this airship through negotiations with Woodman, becoming the acting commander.
Although she was only "acting," with Kotori Inversed and missing, the authority Yutsuki held was basically no different from the Commander's.
The reason she insisted on the title was probably to leave the crew with the impression that "Kotori will co back soday," increasing their confidence. At the sa ti, it also helped raise the crew's favor toward her.
And in fact, Yutsuki had indeed succeeded.
(But... what is this feeling... this strange discomfort?)
Nia secretly frowned and thought.
It was true. Thinking from another person's point of view, carefully observing the distance in communication, and gaining trust—these were things Yutsuki had always been very good at.
Yes. Ryougi Yutsuki was still as thoughtful and reliable as before.
But perhaps that was exactly why, in this world where the situation had changed so much, the calm and collected Yutsuki before her eyes, who seed unchanged from before, made Nia feel happy but also unsure of what to do.
(Forget it... This isn't the ti to think about that. Work, work.)
After shaking her head and throwing away her stray thoughts, Nia sat down at her seat and clumsily began her work.
Although she often mocked herself as dead weight, Nia did not want to beco a burden to others.
Ever since her Sephira Crystal had been stolen by Westcott, she had often co to the airship and studied as a trainee crew mber, hoping to be of so help.
Since Reine had taught her quite a bit about how to use the detectors, after Murasa Reine went missing, Nia naturally filled her position.
"Nia, are you still drawing manga?"
After who knew how long, Yutsuki suddenly asked her this question.
"...No. I already announced that it's on hiatus."
Her hands stopped working for a mont.
After a short silence, Nia answered while pretending to stay calm.
"Rather, the magazine itself has stopped publishing now. The company behind Weeky Shonen Blast collapsed because of a spacequake, and my editor is also out of contact. Even if I draw, there's no way to publish it."
"...I see."
Yutsuki only said that, then continued asking.
"Nia, if the magazine resus serialization soday, will you continue drawing manga?"
"Who knows... probably not."
Hearing Yutsuki's words, Nia pressed her lips together, and finally said sothing against her own heart.
She was worried that if she answered yes, Yutsuki would use Ratatoskr's authority to restart a manga magazine, giving her a chance to continue serializing manga.
Then Yutsuki would use that as a reason to move her away from dangerous areas.
"I don't feel like I can adjust my mood. Besides, everyone is still in such an awful situation. If I'm the only one who selfishly gets happiness, it feels really unfair."
"...I see."
After that simple reply, Yutsuki did not speak again. Their conversation ended there.
(...Huh? Did I ss that up?)
Looking at Yutsuki's subtle reaction, Nia honestly felt a little regret in her heart. She began worrying that she had misunderstood Yutsuki's intention and made the wrong choice.
(If only this were a gal ga... Ah, I really want to load a save and check the branch.)
Reality really was a trash ga, Nia complained in her heart, then lowered her head and continued her work.
...
"Hah——I'm dead tired~"
At night, the heavy work temporarily ended. The exhausted Honjou Nia returned to her room. She did not even have the energy to bathe and simply threw herself onto the bed.
"I feel like... I'm basically a single office lady right now..."
After making that comnt about her current life, Nia stared blankly at the ceiling for a long ti.
Suddenly, she began punching her pillow hard, throwing a tantrum alone in her room.
"Ah——I've had enough!! I want to read manga! I want to read novels! I want to watch ani! I want to draw manga storyboards aaaaaah!!!! I want to go to Akihabara right now, buy a mountain of rch, and sleep surrounded by bishoujo figures and iken figures aaaaaaaaaah!!!"
After venting out every bit of dissatisfaction in her heart, Nia finally lost all strength and collapsed face-down onto the bed. She buried her face in the pillow she had just beaten up and whispered in a voice close to tears.
"I finally found the courage to keep living... so why did things turn out like this..."
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