While the Spirits were talking with Mana after Shidou's second commotion, Reine was examining the readings of the boy's condition in another room of Fraxinus.

Kotori, eager to learn what the hell happened to her brother, had followed and was waiting for her analysist officer to speak.

Kotori knew that yelling for answers would not do any good, especially given Reine's expression but the waiting was unbearable.

The analysis room where they were was quite dark, with no source of light excepted coming from the several computer screens positioned in front of a comfortable chair.

It was Reine's preferred environment, where she would spend entire nights –which explained the bags under her eyes– and the only smell was one of coffee. Thus, it was not decorated in any way.

Eventually, Reine sighed deeply and rubbed her sleepy eyes.

Kotori recognized it as a sign that she was done with what she had to check.

"Reine."

"…"

"Helping Shidou to remember who he really is was supposed to help him. That's what you told us. So why that Shinji Takamiya managed to take control of Shidou's body?" she asked sharply, unable to contain the anger in her voice.

She knew that Reine was not responsible for this, but as she was the one to tell them to do so, she was the only one she could blame at the moment.

"It worked at first…" Reine began.

"Yes, it did! Shidou was Shidou! Shidou was smiling! So why, in the end…"

Kotori couldn't keep her phrasing going and instead, hit a desk with her first.

"Kotori… I am sorry and I understand your concern. To put it simply, when someone is about to die, they can show unexpected resources."

"Yes…"

"Shin's current state is a fight between the two persons occupying his body. If one grows stronger, the other weakens. The fact that Shin's personality to suddenly change was simply a reaction of the one who felt he was pushed aside."

"…the riposte of someone in a dire situation…"

"Exactly. I am very sorry for that."

Kotori collected her thoughts.

With Shidou in that fragile and unstable state, they would have no chance to openly fight DEM. Shidou would be much more vulnerable like this.

No, that was not even the main issue there.

If Shidou were to lose control of his powers… having sealed ten Spirits, the result would be…

Would be what? They had no way to predict what would happen and had no clue of a similar incident in the past.

For such an amount or reiryoku, the entire Japan would be wiped out as well as a probably half of the Asian continent… probably more.

Were they to live again the Itsuka Disaster?...

Kotori shook her head to chase her fear

(No. I will not allow it. I promise I will not let Shidou down. I will not give in to despair like last time.)

Her determination renewed, Kotori breathed in and out before asking Reine:

"So. I heard you had a solution. What is it? What do you need?"

"… I need you to listen to me carefully, Kotori."

"Huh?"

Reine's unexpected's answer made Kotori tilt her head. Reine's sleepy face was unshakable as always, but Kotori felt something was off from her tone.

"What is it, Reine?"

"… Everything I am about to tell you is true. I can assure you this is neither a joke nor a lie."

"…Reine. You're kind of scary."

Kotori did not recognize her friend. She looked like another person as her voice was serious yet somehow…sorry?

"Reine, you say. Huh. It has been my name for so many years…"

"What?"

"You gave me other names, Kotori. Phantom. First Spirit. But the only name I recognize and answer to is Mio Takamiya."

Kotori blinked, not sure of what she just heard.

Only the fact that she was wearing her black ribbons helped her to keep thinking rationally.

Kotori then took in account all the data she had and her possible courses of action.

It leaded her to a conclusion and she acted immediately.

"Camael!"

She called her Angel to summon her Limited Astral Dress.

If Reine was telling the truth…

If Reine was the First Spirit…

Kotori had to restrain her as soon as possible, before she could apply whatever plan she had.

Offense was sometimes the best defense, after all.

But Kotori's call remained unanswered.

Her Limited Astral Dress did not manifest.

Was it Reine's doing?

"Ah, Kotori. You really are a smart child. You immediately tried to take action in case I was telling the truth."

Reine seemed to genuinely praise Kotori but her warm and calm words sounded frightening.

She did not even think of running away.

She was trying to put up the pieces of the puzzle and understand what was going on.

And then, she recalled the story told by chairman Woodman.

A boy named Shinji Takamiya who took in a Spirit named Mio.

Shinji Takamiya.

Shinji.

Shin.

The only person who called Shidou like that was Reine.

Something they all believed to be a mistake. All this time, or even a joke Reine thought of.

But in reality, all this time, Reine – or rather, Mio – was the only one to call Shidou by his "real" name.

More element she found either weird or funny took sense, one after another.

Reine's expression when she told her Shidou was about to suicide once abandoned by his mother.

Reine's anger when they discovered DEM had modified Mana's body.

Reine's determination to help and save Shidou.

And then, a recent detail gave her chills.

Reine was talking about "erasing" the other personality inside Shidou's body.

The fact that they would have to "kill" that other one so Shidou could be himself again.

But.

Reine never said exactly who she would erase.

The possibility of having her best friend killing her big brother gave Kotori enough strength to speak again though with a trembling voice.

"…Reine, I'm begging you. Please, say it was just my stupid idea. Please, tell me you are not planning to…kill Shidou."

Reine pivoted on her chair to face Kotori with her usual expressionless face, playing with a pen.

"I am very sorry, but I can't do that. For me to be with Shin once again… Itsuka Shidou has to disappear."

"!"

"Please listen to me. I have something I want to tell you aside from that. A fair proposition, if I may say."

Kotori wanted to force herself to stay strong. To run away or to fight. But even for her, it was too much.

Her best friend, all this time, had used her.

No, to be exact, she had manipulated everyone.

If Reine was the one who created the Spirits, Shidou's particular power to seal them was probably also her doing.

To say that Ratatoskr was probably born because of her was not an exaggeration.

Reine's betrayal along with her intentions made Kotori lose her cool.

"I trusted you… all this time… now you tell me that you want to kill Shidou… and yet… you make me a proposition?!"

Reine nodded.

This simple gesture gave Kotori the desire of jumping at her but she knew it would be useless.

Taking deep breath, Kotori forced to calm herself and think logically.

If Reine wanted to suppress her, she would've done it already. After all, if she was the same being that protected Shidou from Dàinslef, her power was incommensurable.

Any reckless act would result in an instant game over.

Kotori hardly looked at Reine, who was staring at her with sheer curiosity.

Suddenly, she realized something.

If Reine was the one to create the Spirits and to help Shidou sealing them… what was her objective?

They all knew that an incident like the Itsuka Disaster could occur again. No, to be precise, it was only a matter of time before such a thing would happen again.

A human body was simply not made to contain such an amount of reiryoku. Even if the pass was strong and renewed on a daily basis, it would still break or implode one day or another.

They didn't tell it to Shidou nor to the other Spirits – who all believed that it was now over – but they were actively looking for a solution.

Yes… what was Reine's objective?

As if she had just read Kotori's thoughts on her complexed face, Reine raised her voice:

"I see you are trying to solve the mystery. I will make it easier for you. My only, foolish goal is to be with Shin again. Forever."

Reine played with the stuffed bear that never left her breast pocket.

"As you know, Shin was killed by those DEM people, trying to protect me. At that time… I felt, for the first time of my life, bottomless despair."

"…"

"I loved Shin. I loved him but I did not realize it… until he was taken away from me. I almost lost my mind when it happened. But I forced myself to remain calm and to think, like you just did, Kotori. And I realized the core of the matter was not only the human fragility but also the fact that, one day or another, Shin would die."

Reine shook her head.

"That was unacceptable. So… I thought about it over and over and finally found a solution. I just had to give Shin the same powers I held. But… giving them all at once was impossible. It would've killed him. It took me some time, but I eventually built the perfect plan."

Kotori was listening in awe.

"All those years, I refined and purified the Sephira crystals in order to grant them to talented people asking for power. At the same time, because of my actions, Woodman would create Asgard Electronics, and then Ratatoskr. At this moment, I sadly had to abandon Shin, whom I had been raising for years after I gave birth to him again."

Reine looked truly sad when she said that.

"I then observed Woodman and joined the organization he built as soon as I could. I knew he would eventually find Shin. After Shin sealed you, it was clear that he would become Ratatoskr's asset. After all, his ability fitted perfectly the organization…"

Kotori had thought about it several times all these years.

Shidou was really a gift to Ratatoskr. As Reine just said, his ability to seal Spirits was the perfect tool for their organization.

Too perfect.

As if, yes, as if they had received divine help…

"I had troubles sometimes, but fortunately, Shin went through everything as I knew he would. Sealing the Spirits I created one by one and becoming brighter and brighter…"

"But why would you do that?!" Kotori interjected, unable to contain herself. "You know that Shidou cannot hold these powers! He's not a Spirit like us… he's a human! Do you wish to kill him?!"

"It looks like you did not double check the reports I submitted to you all this time."

"…"

"That's right" Reine nodded. "Why would you do that, after all? I'm the Chief Analysist here, your trusted friend. But you should've as a Commander, checked every file concerning the Spirits. Especially Shin's readings."

"Don't tell me…" Kotori whispered.

Reine took on her desk a digital tablet and handed it to Kotori.

"These are Shin's readings ever since he sealed you."

Kotori was shaking.

The readings indicated that all this time, Shidou possessed the same reiryoku as any Spirit.

It would've been normal since there was a bond between him and them, but it just looked like a Spirit's one.

Moreover, at certain points, the numbers increased suddenly to stabilize. A total of eleven times.

One of them had to be related to the Itsuka Disaster, but the other ten were…

"I think you guessed it by now. But each time Shin sealed one of you, he gained in latent power, even if he did not notice it himself."

"But… why does it look like… he absorbed our powers? I know that there is a bond between us… but these readings say that Shidou is stealing our power…" Kotori gasped.

"Half correct. There is indeed a pass that makes the reiryoku gradually distributed to Shin and you. But the true goal of this bond is not to seal the Spirits powers."

Reine pointed Shidou's readings.

"Slowly but surely, the reiryoku coming from you is transmitted to Shin. But not only that."

All of sudden, Kotori understood.

It was obvious, after all.

All this time, in order to save Shidou; they had been researching a way to extract the reiryoku inside him and turn it into a Sephira Crystal.

But Reine, at the contrary, had been doing the exact inverse.

"Bit by bit, your Sephira Crystals are being transferred to Shin. The process is almost done, as you can see, you can't even summon your Limited Astral Dress. Of course, it is because you are the first Spirit he sealed."

Kotori thought that Reine, or rather Mio, was using a trick to prevent her from summoning her Angel. She realized that she wasn't the culprit… Shidou, indirectly, was.

"And once the transfer is done, he will be almost the same as me. I will then erase Shidou. Then, Shin and I will be together forever."

Kotori was still trying to accept all these revelations.

From the very start, they had been Reine… no, Mio's puppets. However, Kotori could not resolve herself to call her by that name.

"So, now that you know all the details, Kotori, I have an offer to make."

Reine's expression was unchanged.

"Leave us alone. Let the things go on. Do not interfere. If you do, Shin and I will just go on our way without hurting anyone. Besides, the Spirits will lose their powers and will be able to live a normal life. I will personally erase those DEM people who dared to hurt Shin and Mana. Ratatoskr will have no more reason to exist and the world will get rid of the spacequakes."

"… to, leave you alone?"

"Yes. That is my only condition. It is a win-win situation, don't you think?"

Kotori closed her eyes.

She was feeling feverish.

She didn't want to consider it, however, her logic mind examined Reine's proposition.

Basically, she just had to let her be with her first love forever. It was only justice in a certain sense, since she had spent thirty years for the sake of her love.

Her quest could not be denied by Ratatoskr's morals and style.

Plus, she would then erase DEM Industries, the very sworn enemy of Ratatoskr. Kotori didn't want anyone to die but she also knew that Isaac Westcott would never let them in peace. Even if he did, that madman actions were far too dangerous for him to roam free.

And, on top of that, the Spirits' powers would definitely be sealed. They would never have anything to fear.

All it would take for that…

Would be to let Shidou die.

No, not to let him die.

To let Mio erase his very existence.

One life to save millions.

The same choice was submitted to Kotori once gain. The same choice she had to make when Shidou went berserk.

A world without DEM.

A world without spacequakes.

A world where the Spirits would not be Spirits anymore and would live in peace.

And a world without Shidou.

Kotori opened the eyes and looked at Reine firmly.

"…what if I refuse?"

"… if you refuse, in the end, the result will be the same. But… you will struggle in vain and suffer for nothing. I'm not a cruel one, Kotori. As much as possible, I don't want to hurt people, but if I have to, I will do it. That's why I'm asking you to cease your fight."

"Kuh…"

"I don't expect you to give me an answer now. But time is running out. If Ratatoskr is to lead a decisive battle with DEM, I will not stand still."

Suddenly, a ringtone echoed in the room.

Kotori noticed that it was her phone.

Reine nodded, and Kotori picked up.

"Yes."

"Commander Itsuka?! Where are you?!"

Kotori recognized the voice of "Deep Love" Minowa.

"Minowa, calm down. What on Earth is happening?"

"Commander! Shidou… is gone!"

"What?!"

It seemed that Reine also heard that as a light passed in her usually sleepy eyes.

"How is it possible? In his state, he should not… Wait, where are the other Spirits? Do they know?"

"The Spirits are gathered in the control room! They were the ones to discover it and immediately came to warn us!"

"Now of all times… Minowa! I'm coming!" Kotori said.

"Yes!"

Kotori hung up and stood there, stunned by the development of the events.

But for the sake of Shidou… for the sake of everyone, she once again took the role of the commander, putting aside her personal feelings.

She eventually turned her gaze toward Reine.

"… I think you will agree that right now, our priority is to find Shidou. Fighting now would be useless."

"Of course."

Reine stood up too.

"We'll pretend that nothing happened here when we get back in Fraxinus' main control room. We need to work hand in hand for now to find Shidou… But Reine…"

Reine tilted her head.

"I can't accept your… proposition."

Reine smiled sadly.

"I see. I expected as much but I wish I was wrong."

"Yes. I can't and I will find another solution. One that will grant us all a happy end. That is how we Ratatoskr do things" Kotori told her before leaving the room.

Reine's smile did not disappear.

She slowly shook her head.

"If a happy end was possible for everyone, I wouldn't have done all of that" she whispered to herself. "But you will learn it, Kotori."

She remembered the day Shin died.

"Sometimes, a story cannot have a happy end."

And Mio Takamiya also left the obscure room.