Human emotions truly were mysterious.
Murasa Reine… no, Takamiya Mio could not help thinking so.
Joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hatred, despair… Although emotions could be classified by specific nas and colors, the motives that gave birth to those feelings, and the choices pushed forward by them, were often strange and varied. It was difficult to derive any clear pattern through logic or arithtic formulas.
The sa emotion, placed in different people, could lead to two completely different results.
Different emotions, placed in the sa person, could unexpectedly produce the sa ending.
Even for the sa person, with the sa emotion, a difference of only one second could lead to an entirely different answer.
Like mist and clouds, emotions seed to have traces one could follow, yet in truth they drifted unpredictably.
It was precisely because of that instability and changeability that Mio felt sowhat at a loss.
"Why… did you not kill ?"
Looking at the bullet that had strayed from its path and struck the floor, Reine could not help asking.
However, in the face of her question, Kurumi rely said that her goal was not revenge.
That was not the truth, but neither was it a lie.
As the one who had once hard her, Mio naturally understood just how cruel the things she had done to Tokisaki Kurumi had been. Reine had acted many tis as the mysterious Spirit known as "Phantom" and contacted Kurumi. She had also seen Kurumi drive herself to the edge of ruin, almost madly, in order to change history and take revenge on the Origin Spirit nad "Takamiya Mio".
That feeling was no longer sothing as simple as anger or hatred. It had already taken the form of sothing close to a curse, binding Kurumi.
It was not a contradiction that could be resolved with a few words. Because of that, Reine had long since prepared herself: once her identity was exposed, Kurumi would surely hunt her down until one of them was dead.
In truth, if not for the things she still had to do—if she were allowed to die—she would even have been more than willing to die at the hands of this forr friend.
And yet, just now, despite the hatred and killing intent toward her that Kurumi had made no attempt to hide in her eyes, Kurumi had still controlled her own feelings and stopped her attack.
"Tokisaki Kurumi… in the future… what did you see?" (TL:peak fiction)
Silently observing Kurumi's expression, Reine fell into thought.
Although she did not know the exact reason, sothing must have happened during the ti loops perford with Zafkiel that caused Kurumi to change her mind.
"That is none of your business!"
"…"
However, Reine was naturally shut out. Although Kurumi had no intention of attacking, it was obvious that she held no goodwill toward the culprit who had destroyed her life. Naturally, she had no reason to kindly answer Reine's question.
(If I force the issue with violence and cause a commotion, it will instead draw Kotori and Westcott's attention…)
After silently weighing the pros and cons, Reine chose to withdraw.
So the plan failed…
After leaving the building where Kurumi was, Reine could not help sighing.
She did not feel relieved because Kurumi had let her go. On the contrary, Reine's plan had been thrown into disorder because of Kurumi's choice.
Originally, she had intended to play the role of "Phantom" and give Kurumi a few hints to break the loop, guiding her actions. If she failed and her identity was exposed, then she would let the Kurumi who had lost her reason kill her, then feign death and make Kurumi lower her guard.
Who could have expected that not only would her original goal fail to be achieved, but she would also expose her identity for nothing? It truly was losing both the wife and the soldiers.
However, compared to the frustration brought by failure, Reine found that her own mood was far more complicated than she had imagined.
There was joy that an old friend had obtained salvation.
There was relief at seeing a child grow.
There was anxiety toward a future she could no longer predict.
And what remained was a trace of… envy and jealousy toward a companion who had betrayed her by changing on her own.
Unlike an artificial intelligence, Takamiya Mio could experience human emotions. She could possess joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness like a human.
But she was also different from humans.
Humans could age with the passage of ti. They could gradually beco gentle, beco tolerant, beco strong, and beco capable of forgetting the pain brought by loss.
But she could not.
Even though she possessed authority that could control all things and destroy heaven and earth. Even though, with her extraordinary learning ability, "Murasa Reine" had achieved considerable mastery in many fields of human knowledge, she had still failed to obtain any change.
For these thirty years, she had rely imitated the people around her, copying them like drawing a gourd from a gourd, pretending to be a self who had gradually changed.
(After all… on the day Shinji died… my ti… stopped.)
————————
At night, the bright moon hung high above. The early spring night wind, carrying a slight chill, blew across the street.
After leaving Kurumi's abandoned building hideout, Itsuka Shido was walking ho together with Yutsuki.
To be honest, Shido still had not fully digested what Kurumi's clone had told him. His head faintly ached.
From February 9th to today, over the span of six days, DEM had killed him a total of 143 tis. And every ti he died, Tokisaki Kurumi used Zafkiel to travel back to the past and continued trying to save him. That was the truth Kurumi had been hiding.
That said, Shido still did not feel it very strongly. It was not that he thought ti loops were too absurd, nor did he suspect Kurumi of lying to him. It was just that his eyesight was perfectly fine right now, his throat could make sound normally, and when he tried touching his chest and neck, he had neither been cut open nor beheaded.
Even though he was clearly alive and well, he had suddenly been told that he had died over a hundred tis. Even if his reason could understand it, his emotions and instincts still resisted accepting that fact.
"What is it, Shido? You have such a serious look. What are you thinking about?"
Seeming to notice, the chestnut-haired girl beside him turned her head and asked Shido.
"Ah… how should I put it? Being suddenly told that I died more than a hundred tis in the future… I still cannot really react."
Shido let out a long breath and said with a bitter smile.
"That is a normal reaction. If an ordinary person heard it, they would probably just treat it as a joke and throw it to the back of their mind."
Yutsuki showed that she understood.
"You already knew, didn't you, Yutsuki? You do not look very surprised."
"Well, just as you think. Back when Kurumi first ca to to propose cooperation, she told about the ti travel and the assassinations targeting you."
In response to Shido's question, Yutsuki shrugged and did not deny it.
Shido clapped his hands in realization.
"So that was the thing you said you could not answer back then."
"Mm, exactly."
Yutsuki nodded.
"At first, I had no definite way to judge whether Kurumi was lying. If I told everyone, it might create unnecessary anxiety, and I was also afraid that because you cared too much about it, you might waver when facing Kurumi. So my plan was that if Kurumi still had not said anything after today, I would tell you all. For now, let apologize, Shido."
"It is fine. I understood from the start. If you did that, Yutsuki, you must have had your reasons."
Shido waved his hand and answered.
"And you also wanted Kurumi to tell herself, right?"
"Yeah…"
Yutsuki sighed, sowhat helplessly.
"That girl Kurumi probably does not realize it herself, but every ti she loops, her expression looks so awful, as if she might cry if she is not careful. When I saw that, I understood that what Kurumi said was true. Although I do not have mories of the loops, seeing her like that still made feel a little guilty. After all, the one who witnessed your death in the future was her. So I felt that the matter of the loops should be told to you by Kurumi herself."
"Mm… I understand."
Hearing Yutsuki's words, Shido nodded solemnly.
"Well then. After hearing what Kurumi said, what do you plan to do, Shido?"
Raising her tone slightly, Yutsuki asked Shido.
"How should I put it… I feel like every ti I talk to you about the problem of conquering Spirits, you ask this question, Yutsuki."
Shido could not help smiling wryly.
"Of course. The one who has to capture the Spirits is you, not . At most, I can assist you. If you cannot decide your own attitude, how am I supposed to know what to do next?"
Yutsuki answered as if it were only natural.
"That is true… But even before Kurumi told about the loops, I had already decided."
Shido took a deep breath and answered decisively.
"I will save Kurumi. Absolutely!"
Hearing Shido's answer, Yutsuki nodded with satisfaction.
"Mm, that is right. That is the spirit! There is no need to feel guilty or think you owe Kurumi sothing just because she looped to save you. If she wanted to cash in that favor, she would have done it from the very beginning. That pure and unwavering belief is the best repaynt you can give Kurumi."
"Yeah!"
After receiving Yutsuki's approval, Shido imdiately felt much more confident and spoke with full conviction.
"And Yutsuki, I have already thought of a way. A way to save Kurumi without making her devour my spiritual power and return to the past."
"Oh? What way?"
Yutsuki raised her eyebrows in so surprise.
"I will go back thirty years ago in Kurumi's place and persuade the Origin Spirit."
"..."
In an instant, the sowhat expectant look in Yutsuki's eyes turned cold. She changed to looking at Shido as if she were looking at an idiot.
"Huh? Did… did I say sothing wrong?"
Sensing that the atmosphere had suddenly gone cold, Shido asked awkwardly.
"....Nothing…"
Yutsuki pressed a hand to her forehead with a headache. After adjusting her emotions, she confird with Shido,
"Shido, if I am understanding correctly… you want to go back to the past like with Origami last ti, resolve the reason Kurumi and the Origin Spirit beca enemies, and thereby change history, right?"
"Mm… Is that no good?"
"No… I cannot say it is no good… It is just… forget it!"
Yutsuki scratched her hair with a complicated expression. After struggling for a long while, she finally exhaled sharply and made up her mind.
"Itsuka Shido!"
"Yes!"
Being suddenly called by his full na, Shido instinctively straightened his back.
"First, you need to understand that last ti, the fact that you successfully changed history had a lot of accidental factors. You could even call it a miracle. Just because you succeeded last ti does not an you will definitely succeed this ti! You understand that, right?"
"Yes. I understand very clearly."
"And this ti, the point in ti you want to return to is thirty years ago. Kurumi had not beco a Spirit at that ti. In other words, you will not have a second chance to try again. It might even be like with Origami, where the 'present' we are living in now already contains the history of you going back thirty years. Even so, you still want to try?"
"That…"
Hearing this, Shido could not help hesitating. But in the end, he still gritted his teeth and answered.
"Yes! Even if there is only the slightest possibility, I still want to help Kurumi."
"Hah… I really cannot do anything with you."
Hearing those words, Yutsuki powerlessly lowered her shoulders.
"Since you have said that much, I have no choice but to go along with you."
"Haha… thanks, Yutsuki."
Shido said with a bitter smile.
"No need to thank . Since we have decided, we need to first consider how to prepare properly, so we can raise the plan's chance of success."
After lowering her head and thinking for a while, Yutsuki analyzed,
"First and most importantly is information. We have to investigate clearly what exactly happened thirty years ago. At what point in ti, at what location, and by what thod we can change history while causing the smallest possible impact on the present. Though honestly, if it is thirty years ago, even if you only fart, Shido, it would probably have a pretty big effect on the present."
Hearing Yutsuki's taphor, Shido's face filled with black lines.
"That is true… Soone who knows what happened thirty years ago… Woodman-san?"
"If you put it that way, Westcott and Ellen would count too, right?"
Yutsuki added as if joking.
"Uh… there is no way they would help , right?"
Shido could not help breaking into a cold sweat.
"Well, asking Woodman is indeed a decent line of thought. But after all, it was thirty years ago. Even if he rembers, the details have probably already beco vague."
"Uh, true…"
Hearing Yutsuki's words, Shido was stunned. He had obviously not considered that point.
"And there is another problem right now. DEM. Shido, do not forget, you are currently being assassinated by them with great enthusiasm."
"…"
Hearing this, Shido suddenly rembered that Westcott might be monitoring him with Beelzebub, and imdiately fell silent.
'Then what should we do?'
Shido showed the question to Yutsuki with his eyes.
"Well, this is not sothing we can decide in just a few words. For now, let us go ho first and report Kurumi's situation to everyone—"
In the middle of speaking, Yutsuki's voice suddenly stopped.
"Yutsuki?"
Shido looked at Yutsuki in confusion. Imdiately afterward, Yutsuki suddenly grabbed his hand and, without another word, pulled him into an alley.
"Eh?!"
Because the alley was extrely narrow, he and Yutsuki were so close they were almost pressed together. Her pretty face was right before his eyes, and the faint fragrance from her smooth long hair drifted around Shido's nose.
Not long ago, he had arbitrarily imagined Yutsuki in a sexy maid bikini to resist Kurumi's underwear temptation. Now, the very person he had fantasized about was pressed right against him. Shido imdiately felt at a loss.
"Wh-what is it, Yutsuki?"
"Shh. Do not make a sound. Hide your presence."
Noticing Yutsuki's serious expression, Shido understood that this was not the ti to be distracted. He quickly cleared away his stray thoughts and held his breath.
(Is DEM attacking again?)
Trying hard to keep himself calm, Shido followed Yutsuki's gaze and looked toward the street.
Seconds passed one after another. Under the cold streetlight, Shido only saw a woman with dark circles under her eyes, a teddy bear doll tied at her chest, walking past the intersection with her head lowered.
(Reine-san?)
After seeing clearly who it was, Shido frowned.
A long while later, after confirming that the other person had gone far away, Yutsuki and Shido finally ca out from the alley.
"Yutsuki, that was Reine-san just now, right? Why did we hide from her?"
"…"
Yutsuki did not answer Shido's question. She turned her head and looked in the direction Reine had co from.
If she rembered correctly, that was also the direction Kurumi's clone had left in after saying goodbye to them.
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