Chapter 38 - Memories of emptiness.
On the top floor of a rundown building, a girl with pink hair stared at the computer screen in front of her with narrowed eyes. The dim light from the monitor illuminated her face, making her expression of frustration even more pronounced. She furrowed her brow, as if trying to decipher a complicated puzzle.
"What went wrong?" she asked herself. "Was it that interference earlier?"
Suddenly, a sharp noise cut through the air, making the girl jump in her chair. She rubbed her temples with her fingertips, as if trying to relieve a headache. That's when she noticed something strange on her right arm: the deep scar that crossed her skin started pulsing, as if it were gaining a life of its own.
The girl stared at the mark for a moment, watching as a faint emerald glow spread throughout the length of the scar. That's when she let out a sigh, looking even more defeated.
"My scars are coming back. Seems like my body won't hold up without Number 6's help."
x-x
Another day in this new world. Even though she wanted to deny it, Mugino Shizuri was already starting to get used to it.
The room was dimly lit by the soft glow of a nearby nightstand lamp, casting a warm orange hue on the walls. As she rolled over in the soft, fluffy sheets of her luxurious king-sized bed, she couldn't help but worry.
How she wanted to have him here beside her, so much so that clutching that pillow so close to her chest made her want to close her eyes and pretend it was him there, so close to her, breathing that warm breath she liked so much. But unfortunately, the only "person" with her there was one she didn't know how to feel about, but who she certainly wanted gone at once.
There she sat, perched at the edge of the bed. The girl before her was the true owner of this body, the one who had destroyed herself in her obsession. Mugino Shizuri didn't want to admit it, but she saw the girl as a monster, a version of herself that she didn't want to become.
"You're a disappointment, you know that?" 'Mugino' scowled at her, her arms crossed over her chest. "In the end, you chose to keep up this charade."
"Why are you complaining? If all goes well, I will leave, and then finally you can go back to your 'happy' life here in this world. Something tells me that I will be the beneficiary of this story." Shizuri stared at the ceiling as she said this.
"He's winding you up. You know that."
"Leave me alone. I'm tired of hearing your poisonous words." She threw the pillow in the girl's direction, but it obviously hit only air.
"You know I'm right. And yet what do you do? You let him treat you like that yesterday, what a joke."
"I thought you looked at my memories. I don't care if it's him."
"And I've already made it clear that the problem is worse than that."
'Mugino' stood up, starting to circle around the room, while Shizuri followed her with her eyes. She didn't even need to say anything for her to know what she wanted her to do.
"I'm right. We both know," said 'Mugino'. "If you had pressed harder, not let yourself get carried away with a few kind words and a few caresses..."
"So what? What is your goal anyway?" Shizuri's voice grew louder, her words echoing through the room. "I was starting to like you, I even let you look at my precious memories with him, and this is how you treat me? What is your problem?"
"A person like you would not be able to understand," 'Mugino' replied, her voice low and almost menacing.
That sounded so personal, so much so that Shizuri couldn't help but sit up in bed to look at the girl's somber expression. She studied the other girl's face, searching for any sign of emotion or weakness, but 'Mugino' seemed impenetrable, her features set in a mask of cold indifference.
"I thought you said we are alike," Shizuri said, "that I was an inferior version of you, so why this now?"
"Like I said...you wouldn't understand." She sighed wearily. Her desire to talk seemed to have vanished in an instant. "Just tell him, test your theory. I know very well the reaction he'll have."
"After yesterday, do you still think the same way?"
"Yes, and you think the same as me." 'Mugino' pointed at her own head like a gun about to be fired. "I know that because we're practically fused together now. I bet even you don't know where I end and where you begin."
As Meltdowner didn't need to think to answer, her response came quickly.
"It's time to open up the game," Shizuri said, determination evident in her voice. "Honestly, after yesterday, maybe in the end, you were right. He was ready to abandon our world, to abandon me. I don't know if things will continue the same way from here on out, but I have to get all this weight off my chest."
After yesterday's conversation, Shizuri had decided to leave Touma's dormitory and return to her apartment. Even though the conversation had ended on neutral terms, the weight of her emotions was still heavy. The boy seemed to have figured it all out, since he said he would meet her again this morning in District 10. It was time to follow the last lead, and decide what her future will look like.
x-x
In a way, this was the most dangerous prison in the already unruly District 10. That thick glass in front of that person was probably not enough, but the visitors seemed calm as they looked at that white monster.
"Talk about unexpected visitors," Accelerator said in a bored tone. #1's gaze was on Meltdowner, who was standing apart and leaning against a wall in the visiting area. "It's been a while, #4."
The Strongest didn't expect to wake up in the morning to find unexpected visitors. For a moment, Accelerator thought it would be Last Order or Yomikawa, but thanks to that demon, the visitor's identity was revealed to be someone unexpected.
But still, seeing him in Meltdowner's company was enough to subtly draw surprise on the white monster's face.
"Better get down to business," Shizuri said, approaching the bulletproof glass. "We need a favor from you."
Accelerator's gaze shifted in the direction of Kamijou Touma, sitting there with his arms crossed and his lips making a straight line. It was not unusual for that boy to be in all sorts of strange company. After the 'epilogue' of Operation Handcuffs, seeing him comfortable having someone from the dark side of Academy City by his side shouldn't be out of place, but the strongest esper's intuition said there was something else. Not just intuition, actually.
"What have you gotten yourself into this time, third rate?" asked #1, still maintaining a bored tone, even looking sleepy to other people, uninterested, but that was far from the case. "I've heard some things from my demon, but how much is true?"
"If your demon said that I am a Kamijou Touma from 'another world', then she told you the important part."
"What about her?" #1 gestured towards Shizuri with a nod of the head, eyes remained fixed on the boy.
"So does she."
Accelerator waited for the boy to elaborate, but it seemed that he was in a hurry as he simply started to take something out of his pocket.
"As Shizuri said, we need a favor from you." Touma unfolded the paper he took from his pocket and then held it close to his head. "Does this mean something to you?"
Number 1's attentive eyes automatically scanned that unfamiliar engraving, the expressions changing from false disinterest to mild surprise. It meant something, but the white monster didn't say what was thinking for the moment.
"Where did you get that?" asked the strongest.
"In our world. It was drawn in the sky, like stars. When I saw it, the first thing that came to my mind was some kind of magic circle."
The girl next to Touma began to cast a sharp look in his direction. Apparently, this was information she didn't know, or at least part of it. This put doubt in #1's mind. What was the relationship between those two?
"Do you have something to say, #4?"
"Nothing relevant… actually…" She sat down in one of the chairs and took the paper from Touma's hands, leaning it against the glass as if to tell the person on the other side to take a closer look. "It looks like someone has hidden the Kanji of your name here amidst a bunch of meaningless magical drivel. Can you help with that or not?"
Seeing that she seemed bothered by something and the slightly annoyed tone in her voice, Accelerator looked to a corner of the room before speaking again.
"Qliphah Puzzle 545."
As soon as those words were spoken, a small whirlpool of dirt began to swirl inside the small room. As if materializing from all that junk, a figure that looked like a strange fusion between a girl, a bat and an octopus appeared right next to #1. She was floating like a helium gas balloon, her dress was full of newspaper clippings, and even though she was small, this demon girl was well endowed when it came to breasts.
"Yes master," said the demon, with a rather odd smile on her face.
"Huh? What trick is that?" asked Shizuri, looking in the direction of the demon.
Accelerator watched as the tea-colored-haired girl examined the demon's dress hovering in the air. #4's face changed between surprise and disgust, in a way that she seemed genuinely shaken by what she was seeing. The boy next to her just looked confused.
"What is it, Shizuri?" he asked, putting a hand on her shoulder. Accelerator paid close attention to that gesture. "Why do you look so shaken?"
"You...can't you see?" She pointed at the demon, more precisely, at her clothes.
"Yes, but it's not the first time, so I'm fine. I just didn't expect you to react like that."
The reason Meltdowner had reacted that way seemed to have escaped the boy's sight, but Accelerator knew very well what it was all about. That monster had experienced it several times before. This demon was especially effective at causing that in people like them, people with so many 'demons' inside.
"Stop it, Qliphah Puzzle 545," Number 1 ordered, without changing the tone of voice one bit.
"Umm... Okay." the demon just nodded and for a moment the papers that made up her dress seemed to move.
To be honest, the white monster found the girl's overreaction on the other side of the glass unexpected. Once, that same girl standing there cringing as she looked into her own darkness, had saved Accelerator's life. In a moment of vulnerability, she had appeared and with words alone had set #1 on the right path, a path that she said was long but the best option to take.
That day she seemed fine with herself and at the same time angry about something out of her control, or at least she was trying hard to give that impression. So seeing her like that almost served as proof that the person there was not the same. Or maybe, she just went through situations that made her react that way.
That didn't matter at the moment for #1.
"Examine that drawing." Accelerator tapped the thick glass."I suppose that's Clonoth."
"Heh heh heh heh… correct, master," said Qliphah Puzzle 545 "There is something else there, but the structure is almost identical to what we are used to."
"You were right then," muttered Shizuri to Touma. A small smile appeared for half a second on her face. She quickly shifted her gaze to the demon. "What does it mean?"
"It's some kind of bonding ritual...no, it's more than that. These are all specific instructions to do something…"
The demon paused and then dematerialized. When she returned, she was on the other side of the glass now. Her pale hands held the sheet of paper and then floated to a corner of the room. She was clearly avoiding getting close to the boy in doing so.
"I see," the demon continued, "if you are from another world, then these are detailed instructions for a ritual to bring you back."
"Wait, what?" Shizuri rose from her chair to approach the bat girl in the corner of the room. "Instructions? Isn't that too convenient?"
"I can't tell. Eh heh heh... is it?" The demon shrugged.
"You didn't have to do any kind of 'reverse engineering' or anything like that?"
"Not exactly. There are things here that I don't fully understand, which means that this was for more than one thing, but clearly there are instructions here for a single purpose."
"That doesn't make sense." Shizuri shook her head, incredulous. "There must be something more to it. I can't believe that girl would do something like that without a good reason. It seems like a trap to me."
Accelerator didn't know what Meltdowner was talking about, so just decided to hurry things along. Thinking of something like that and trying to solve the puzzle was not #1's job.
"Tch, what a waste of time. "Accelerator looked in the direction of the demon and gestured by twirling two fingers. "Can you handle it all by yourself?"
"I'm not sure," the demon replied, "but that boob-grabber is the keeper of the library of grimoires, so I should have no problem setting up the ritual."
The way she referred to Touma earned an intense stare from the tea-colored-haired girl.
"Good, take care of it then." Accelerator pointed in the boy's direction. "Since it's about him, you shouldn't encounter any issues because the network will offer assistance with whatever you require."
"Understood, I will be back soon master." She handed the paper into Shizuri's hands and then grinned. "Come on, I don't have all day. Eh heh heh."
Once again the demon girl disappeared into a swirl of garbage, leaving the two visitors confused. With a nonchalant shrug, Touma put a half smile on his face and then nodded to the white monster trapped in its cage.
"Thank you, Accelerator."
"Don't thank me yet, we don't know if it will all work out."
"It's not just about that."
The boy didn't elaborate, he just got up from where he was sitting and started walking towards the exit.
"Come on, Shizuri, I don't like to keep girls waiting." His tone was full of irony.
Rolling her eyes, Meltdowner cast an appraising glance toward Accelerator, as if she had noticed something.
"What is this 'glow' of happiness I see in your eyes?" she asked, alternating her gaze between number 1 and the level 0 going away.
"Quiet, #4. Mind your own business." for the first time in the conversation, Accelerator seemed to be slightly irritated.
"Wow... that's a bit of an overreaction," she said, a small smile playing on her lips as she tossed her hair in an arrogant gesture. "I might just have to ask him about that story."
"Do you want to die?"
"Goodbye, #1"
The girl began to follow the boy with hurried steps, but she stopped suddenly when Accelerator touched the thick glass twice. She turned around, looking once more in the direction of the strongest esper.
"So," said #1 hesitantly, "the #4 of this world once told me that she was following another path. Did you choose the same path as her?"
It wasn't clear whether she liked the question or not, as the frown on her face and the hand gesture she made were both open to interpretation.
"No," she said dryly. "I'd rather tell myself that I'm in a better one, although I can't tell if that's true or not." Her gaze went toward the door, where the boy had already disappeared from sight. "Well, I used to think that having a certain person by my side was enough to give me a new perspective, but now I'm not so sure."
"If you expect some advice, I don't have any." The white monster also made a disingenuous gesture. "That bastard has probably said too much already." Accelerator stood up, turning back to the girl. "And I bet he still has more to say, probably enough to clear up your doubts."
Hidden from the girl, a subtle smile appeared on the face of the Academy City's board chairman.
x-x
Back at the Kamijou residence, two espers, a demon, a goddess, and a human library were gathered around a Kotatsu. The demon still seemed somewhat uncomfortable being around that spiky-haired boy.
"These two have history," commented 'Mugino', who was also sitting there in a corner of the room. "What do you mean 'boob-grabber'? Are you dating a pervert by any chance?"
'Could you leave me alone at least now? We're in the middle of something here.'
Shizuri perceived that the place was undergoing a redecoration. Furniture had been rearranged and placed in unusual positions that rendered it unusable. Sheets of paper were scattered about, displaying drawings and pictures that the girl could barely comprehend. Strange symbols and patterns adorned the walls, and the air was filled with the pungent aroma of incense. It was as if a mysterious and ominous ritual was being prepared, and Shizuri couldn't shake off the feeling of unease that had settled in her chest.
"Watch where you put that hand," warned the demon girl, still keeping her distance from Touma, "No, no, don't go in that direction..."
In the end, the boy sighed tiredly and then decided to move away from there and walk towards the kitchen, maybe there he wouldn't disturb that floating girl.
After the person-shaped problem left the scene, the demon and the goddess started exchanging a few words full of technical jargon related to magic that Shizuri was sure was a conversation entirely in another language. The nun was busy drawing symbols perfectly using crayons, which almost made her smile since if she wasn't so skilled, she would look more like a child doodling something in kindergarten.
"Hey, can we talk some more?" asked Touma, lightly touching Shizuri's shoulder with his fingertip. She turned away, annoyed.
"What do you want now, Kamijou? Our conversation yesterday was more than enough. I don't have anything else to talk to you about."
"Why are you calling me that?" Touma winced at the sound of the girl's cold voice.
"Well, that's your fault. It's what we're left with after yesterday. Aren't we supposed to be just 'friends'?" Shizuri asked, her tone laced with bitterness.
"Good friends also use each other's names," Touma replied calmly. "But if that's what you want, I'll go back to calling you Mugino, or Mugino-san."
'I don't want you to call me that, you damn idiot.'
A certain girl identical to her put on a provocative smile at that instant.
The effort she made not to let out a giant sigh was beyond description. The air she inhaled felt like ice in her lungs, and the reason for that was the very neutral and casual tone that boy was using. How could he just assume something like that as if it were nothing? Why wasn't he angry that she was treating him like this? She assumed that he wanted her to feel worse, but maybe that wasn't it at all.
"When this is all over, will we still be ourselves?" asked Touma, watching the symbols being drawn in his room. "Will what we feel for each other still be there?"
"I don't want to have that conversation."
Shizuri's stubbornness in refusing to listen to him finally made Touma lose patience. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him clench a trembling fist. The boy walked across the room without saying a word and opened the front door. He stepped out of sight, which made her let out the breath she had been holding since she said her last sentence, trying to stop herself from elaborating on what she was feeling.
"Do you still have doubts that I'm right?" asked Mugino, standing right next to her, watching the now closed door. "He has given up on you, that was clear yesterday. The only reason he kept at it is because he's still not sure how you feel."
'I wish I could deny that.' Shizuri's eyes stared at the floor, her face twisting, her chin going rigid. 'I guess I at least have to come clean. I owe it to him.'
'Mugino's' satisfied expression was interrupted by the approach of a 15cm girl. Othinus crossed her arms and fixed her lone eye on Shizuri.
"Can I help you?" said Shizuri, also crossing her arms.
That fairy was skilled, as she quickly climbed onto the countertop using the drawer handles as support. What she had to say seemed to be important if she was taking the trouble to try to get closer to the girl.
"Since we're about to do something important," Othinus said, taking a seat, "I should give my final opinion on this. But first, I need to confess that I overheard part of your conversation yesterday."
Shizuri didn't take long to cast a piercing glance in the goddess's direction.
"I'm not interested in your disagreement," Othinus continued, "but hearing that this 'April' girl has the thought patterns of my understander made me somewhat... concerned."
"Do you know something I don't?"
"That's a foolish question to ask a goddess, human girl. Nonetheless, I must admit that I initially doubted the explanation of how that individual could bring an entire world into existence. However, I'm now inclined to believe that your theory is correct… and… there's a strong possibility that she intends to do it once again."
This made her suspicious, although she tried with all her might to hide it. That goddess was still keeping quite a few things from her, which didn't impress her one bit. Even though the two had come to a brief understanding yesterday, she didn't give Shizuri any sense of trust.
"I have a favor to ask of you," Othinus declared, standing tall and locking 'eyes' with the girl. "But let me be clear, it's not really a request. Consider it more of a demand… or a warning. When you return to your world, Kamijou Touma must not dare to confront that girl again."
"Why not? Do you think she can beat him?"
Othinus shook her head and then looked toward the door, as if checking something. Then she continued in a serious tone.
"If they face each other, with him knowing what he knows now, there is a great chance that he will end up killing her."
It seemed that Shizuri had heard wrong, but still, the frown on her face appeared regardless of what she believed.
"What?" The level 5's tone was one of incredulity. "You mean he could end up accidentally killing her with that weird power of his?"
It was her best bet. Or deep down she wanted that to be the truth. But Othinus shook her head, longer than necessary.
"I'm not obligated to explain myself any further," Othinus declared haughtily. She threw herself to the ground, turning away from Shizuri. "Just know that I am not one to make baseless claims. That pink-haired girl's life will be over if Kamijou Touma meets with her again, I have no doubt about that."
Shizuri didn't want to delve any further into the topic, not now, so she clasped her hands together to calm her nerves and stop herself from asking any more questions. When the door slowly opened, the boy walked in, bringing with him a dark feeling that made her wonder how much she truly knew about him.
x-x
"Heh heh heh. We'd better explain a little of what we're doing here before we proceed, but first, " the floating demon grumbled, "You, Kamijou Touma, stay in that sky blue circle and don't move, we don't want Imagine Breaker interfering with anything."
All the preparations were over, and now it was time for the ritual to begin. The room had been transformed into a strange mixture of a temple and an avant-garde art exhibit. The walls were covered in intricate, weird symbols that seemed to writhe and pulse in the dim light. A small, circular table was at the center of the room, surrounded by a chaotic array of candles, crystals, and other random things.
Despite the bizarre array of objects, there was a certain simplicity to the room as if everything had been chosen with a specific purpose in mind. The overall effect was both mesmerizing and unsettling, as if the very fabric of reality was about to be torn apart and remade before their eyes.
"This is a bonding ritual based on Thelema," Index said, taking a seat to the right of the room, the only place where symbols were not drawn. "This room is an artificial temple that mimics the real thing that is somewhere else, presumably in the world you came from."
"Presumably?" asked Shizuri. "That doesn't give me much confidence."
"The truth is that this is all a long shot," stated Othinus, sitting on Index's shoulder, "I'd say there's a good chance this will work out, but it's still strange to have such convenient instructions."
"Anyway," Qliphah Puzzle 545 cut in, clearing her throat, "we need to unite the two of you in a ritual and then use the Clonoth, the tree that connects all humanity, to connect with the other world. What we do here in this temple must affect the other made on the 'other side'. If we receive a signal, then we can move on to the next step."
"Signal?" asked Touma, trying hard to keep his right hand as still as possible. "You talk as if you expect someone to be helping us from the 'other side'."
"Someone has already helped us." The demon floated toward Touma, but stopped suddenly and swayed in the air as if being hit by a strong wind. "And you know very well who it was. It's Clonoth we're talking about here."
Touma tilted his head, but his face was one of realization.
"I see..." He almost raised his right hand, perhaps trying to touch his chin. "I had already suspected it the moment I saw those lights."
"What are you guys talking about?"
Shizuri's question seemed to fall on deaf ears as everyone ignored her, even Touma, but he seemed more lost in thought than ignoring her.
Forgetting this, she followed that demon's instructions, standing in an emerald green circle and closing her eyes.
"Ready or not, here we go, heh heh." Qliphah Puzzle 545 snapped her fingers. "Library of grimoires, keep guiding and maintaining the steady flow. I'll access Clonoth now. However, I must warn you both that this may be unpleasant."
"Meaning?" Touma sounded slightly worried.
"Nothing dangerous," warned the demon. "This is a ritual based on Thelema, which means that one part influences the whole. Every man and woman is a star, remember? You two will have to connect, and only then connect to the otherworldly version of you, if one of you is unstable in mind, then everyone in this ritual will be."
That sounded like a problem, one that Shizuri did not like to deal with. How 'stable' was her mind in that instant?
The lights suddenly went out before she could get ready. Her body was suddenly light, but her heavy breathing was so loud that it bothered her. The room around her was not only dark, it was as if everything was slowly fading away, leaving only her there. She embraced this feeling, relaxing and letting herself go. It was so light, soft, like a leaf gently gliding on a calm stream.
Opening her eyes, she gazed into the emptiness. Strange as it seemed, even in that nothingness she could feel Touma's presence, as if he was still there beside her. Maybe this was what that demon girl was referring to when she said that the two of them needed to connect. Shizuri reached out, yearning to touch him, but he seemed to be slipping away. Although she knew he was still there, her body could not bridge the gap between them. Nevertheless, she felt a mental connection to him, even in this abstract void before her.
A burst of light suddenly illuminated the emptiness, and with it came a multitude of colors. It was like watching a painting form right before her eyes. Were these memories? Memories of that boy she didn't recognize, memories that maybe didn't even belong to the person who promised to stay by her side. There was someone there with him, and it was a girl. She was blond and wore a hat that resembled a witch's hat from children's stories she used to read, and one of her eyes was covered by an eye patch. A golden spear was in her hands... and then... and then...
Mugino Shizuri was not a normal girl, no matter how you looked at it. She was an assassin, and she was very good at what she did, so much so that it disgusted her. But even after smelling so much blood and death, she almost vomited at what she had just seen.
Flash and more flash of memory flooded her head without her permission. Yes, if she could, she would stop that from happening, she didn't want to see any of it. She rejected it, and rejected it, but it wouldn't end. The person right there beside her, the person she loved... was the same person who had just died before her eyes.
What could it possibly be? Memories? It seemed impossible. She witnessed countless worlds and experienced an array of despair in various forms, but she could only watch, powerless to intervene. False accusations were levied against that boy she loved, and he was sentenced to death by hanging. Stranded on a mountain with acquaintances, he was forced to give up his flesh to ensure their survival until rescue arrived. He lay immobile in a hospital bed until his funeral, where he was buried in soil and began decomposing while still alive, starting from the ends of his limbs. The Earth became uninhabitable, and he was cast into space, drifting aimlessly in a capsule-like vessel. As a puny human, he was destroyed by a giant robot or an asteroid.
It was madness, a clear side effect of the spell being used. Shizuri kept repeating this to herself, over and over again. But eventually, she realized that it wasn't the case. The only problem was that she had no idea how long it took her to come to this realization. How could she know how much time had already passed in this strange and disorienting state?
The air filling her lungs felt like embers. Something had changed, she only knew this because she collapsed on the floor, like a marionette that had been cut to its strings. She was back. It was Touma's dormitory there, she was sure.
"Shizuri?" Touma forgot that a ritual was taking place and ran toward the girl. "Hey, Shizuri, talk to me... Shizuri, what happened?"
The desperate voice of the boy reached her ears, but it sounded so far away. She felt his hand on her back, stroking her gently. Despite everything that had happened, the way he was treating her made her feel guilty. Without thinking twice, her body moved on its own, turning towards him and embracing his body tightly.
"It's okay," he said worriedly, trying to understand what was going on. "How do you feel? Did something go wrong?"
The words to explain what was happening to her couldn't form in her mind, so she just kept hugging him for a few more seconds. The problem with her not being able to say anything, was that the boy was still desperate, although he was showing it in a silent way, hugging her as he stroked the top of her head.
"Something like this was expected." That female voice snapped her out of the trance she was in. A sigh was heard before that arrogant voice continued. "Shall we proceed, #4?"
The girl's blood began to boil in her veins, her teeth grinding. No instant passed after that "goddess" spoke and Shizuri turned away from Touma. With eyes filled with rage, she advanced toward Othinus, pulling her off Index's shoulder using her prosthetic arm.
Everyone there didn't seem to understand what was going on. But everything got even worse when Shizuri activated her ability, molding her Meltdowner in her right hand. The rage in her body was so great that she didn't even have to think. She would turn that "goddess" into ashes and then, if that dark feeling she was feeling passed, she would explain herself to the others.
But a sound of breaking glass interrupted her.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Touma asked, grabbing the girl's right wrist. "Shizuri, let go of her."
"Stay back, I don't want to hurt you," Shizuri warned between teeth. She increased the grip of the little girl on her hands, who didn't seem to fight it.
"Shizuri... what did you see there?" The boy's question made her look away from him. She hoped that would be enough for him to understand. "It's not what it looks like."
"I don't give a damn what it looked like or not!" Shizuri shouted. She shook off the grip on her wrist and looked at Othinus again. "I don't know if what you did to him was just an illusion or the whole thing was real, but I have only one question, and think carefully before you answer, 'goddess'." A pause was made so she could breathe, a futile attempt to become calmer. "Why?"
The little girl, caught between Shizuri's non-human fingers, did not wait a single second to respond.
"I have no reason to explain myself," Othinus said, keeping a straight face even though she was being crushed. However, she looked in Touma's direction, which made her change her expression. "I was alone, lost. I had already tried all the other options...or so I thought."
There was pain in her voice, even with what Shizuri was feeling she could tell, but that girl's words didn't serve to calm her, maybe nothing would. She just wanted to find a reason not to feel bad about what she was about to do before Touma stopped her. If she had to be honest, of all the people she had ever killed, that was the only one she would really feel good about doing.
"Touma, what's going on?" The nun stepped forward and began tugging at the boy's sleeve. "What's up with 'creepy eyes'?"
"Shut up, annoying girl!" Shizuri shouted, taking a step toward Index. "You knew that all along, didn't you? You are an accomplice of this 'goddess'."
Irrational thoughts now slid into the girl's head filled with rage. Even though it was senseless, she had no problem directing the anger she felt at that other girl as well. In fact, she had enough anger to distribute it to just about every person Touma knew, in this world or the next.
Until now, she only thought that some of his friends from the other world were terrible when it came to treating him well, and that in this world it was different, especially after meeting that Hamazura guy. That was one of the reasons she treated him that way when he said it was okay to stay here. She genuinely thought that his life here was superior to his life in the other world, that she was being selfish in trying to take away the 'perfect life' he had here. How wrong she was.
And knowing this made something explode inside her.
"I will kill you both!" Shizuri activated her ability once again. "I don't care if I'm going to be trapped in this world. Maybe it's even better that way. After I'm done with you two, I'm going after this universe's version of that demanding girl from my school. I bet she's still treating you the same way to this day, but that will change."
"Shizu -" Touma had no chance to approach her, or finish calling her by name.
"I said back off!" As she screamed, she stood behind Index, holding her like a hostage. "Take one more step and I'll blow up this freeloading bitch!"
"Shizuri, please calm down. Let's talk, Okay?"
"I'm tired of talking!"
"You said you would listen to me, didn't you?" he said, raising his hands in surrender. "Anything I had to say, you would listen and help me. So now I need you to listen to me and calm down, please. I don't want to have to hurt you." The expression on his face was full of pain. "Please."
Her heart was already in pieces, but seeing the person she loved getting hurt because of her only made it worse. She looked around, realizing that white demon hardly seemed to care about all this.
"You, Qliphah something," Shizuri said, unwilling to let go of the hostage.
"Um... yes?"
"Can this ritual be finished without them?"
"Touma, I don't like -"
"DON'T SAY HIS NAME!" Saliva escaped Shizuri's mouth, such was the fury she felt. "Speak his name one more time in front of me, you stupid fucking nun. Just one more time."
"The ritual can be finished without them," replied the demon, so nonchalant that she had both hands behind her head.
"Great."
Shizuri's gaze fixated on Touma, who immediately shook his head in denial. Her mind raced, considering her next move, while Touma silently pleaded with her not to go too far. The tension in the air thickened as they locked eyes, and Shizuri's hand twitched, as if ready to activate her power at any moment.
"Kamijou, I said I would listen to you, but not with them here." Shizuri let go of the silver girl, not only that, but she placed Othinus gently on her shoulder. "And I need you to listen to me too."
"Always," he replied, still holding up his hands. "But promise you won't try to hurt them anymore."
"Send them away." Her tone was stern as she pointed with her head toward the door.
"Huh?" Touma tilted his head to the side and then looked in Index's direction.
"The Touma of this world is different from my Touma, isn't it?" She turned away from the girls and walked to the door, opening it. "I no longer care about the person who owns that body you're borrowing, but I need to know that the person I love will always put me first, no matter what."
It wasn't rational, but it was a choice she wanted to see him make. There was a good chance that the person she was looking at this moment was not the one she knew. The reason she thought this was because she also didn't know if it was still her talking, or the other her whispering in her ear. But what did it matter? That would solve everything anyway. Both for Shizuri and for 'Mugino'. The two hoped that the boy had already given up on them, if what he had said to them yesterday was proof enough. So this was nothing more than a way for her to stop trying to resist and accept that the other 'her' was right all along.
And the answer was given almost instantly.
"Go," Touma said, looking at Index and Othinus. "Don't come back until we leave. "
"But Tou -"
"You heard Mugino, Index. Don't call me by my name, at least not while the other me is here."
A spark of satisfaction ran through Shizuri's body, a smile appearing at the corner of her lip. At least she now knew that the person there was still the one who had made that promise to her.
"Now go." Touma pointed to the open door. "Don't worry, the Kamijou Touma of this world is still here, but that is not his choice."
"Rather unfair," Othinus commented, earning a murderous look coming from Shizuri. "You're just an impostor, you shouldn't make those choices for him."
"Like I care," he replied simply, without any hesitation.
Shizuri didn't understand, but Othinus also smiled at that instant. The anger she felt was coming back, but she pushed it away, this was no time to further hurt the feelings of the person she loved.
"Let's go, human girl," Othinus said to Index, crossing her legs and arms in an arrogant manner. "Don't worry about the rest. Kamijou Touma will always be Kamijou Touma, no matter the universe. Even his foolish decisions remain the same."
After that, the two left the apartment without saying another word. Shizuri felt that she would need a gigantic explanation if she was to understand what this "goddess" meant. However, that was the least of her concerns at the moment. All she wanted was to focus on the person standing before her, who looked at her as though she was the only thing in the world that mattered. She knew she had achieved this in a selfish way, but she couldn't afford to feel guilty right now.
"I'll give you a few minutes," the demon said nonchalantly, "but don't take too long, I need to get back to being my master's eyes and ears."
The demon dematerialized, but the two paid her no attention. Instead, they stared at each other with an intense gaze. Shizuri took advantage of the silence to contemplate her next move, having already made the decision to follow the instructions of the voice in her head.
"I'm not going to apologize for everything I just did," Shizuri began, walking in circles around the room, trying to hide her nervousness. "When I decided that I would enter into a relationship with you, I told myself that your problems would be my problems."
"Did you also decide that your problems would be mine?"
"Yes, but until now I have not been totally honest." She stopped walking. Her trembling lips were colorless. "It took both of us being transferred to a parallel world for us to have this conversation...love really does blind sometimes."
The effort to keep herself talking was almost unbearable. She needed to pour her heart out now, to speak all that she felt, even though that other 'Mugino' over there would delight in what the boy would say and feel when he heard it. She had already accepted it.
"Kamijou, I asked you once the moment you started to like me, do you remember?"
"Of course I did. It was just after we started dating, still wounded from that mission. And I remember what I answered, and I can repeat it if you want. Nothing has changed since that day."
"I know..." Shizuri paused to breathe, trying to control her emotions. "But what you told me... that bothered me."
What she felt now was the same as the time she had heard him explain why he liked her. That was what the other 'Mugino' was trying to say. In all of Touma's loving speech, where he praised her and expressed what attracted him so much to her, she couldn't see the person that was her there.
And it was painful.
She had tried to deny it to herself all this time, but that feeling would not go away. The only way she could find to try to keep what she felt hidden was to focus on what he had said and try to emulate the person Touma described so fondly. That was the girl he liked, the perfect 'Shizuri' he had confessed himself to in that dark, cold tunnel. But no matter how hard she tried, deep down she knew the truth.
Touma tried to say something, but Shizuri stopped him by gesturing with her hand.
"Kami - no, Touma, you wanted to know more about my family, so it is only fair that I tell you everything. I owe you that."
"I have told you before that you don't owe me anything."
"Just listen, okay?" she asked, moving closer to him so that her weak voice reached him. "You were right, about my parents...my family. There is a reason I wanted to get away from them, to gain total independence. The reason for that is that I lied to you. No, I just didn't tell you the whole truth."
"About why you are part of the dark side?"
The casual way he said it, as if he was sure, almost made her smile. Sometimes he understood her so well that it seemed more like something supernatural. This fact was one of the reasons that gave her the courage to continue.
"I was already born destined to be part of that darkness," she continued. "The Mugino family is one of the richest in the entire world, and much of that empire was founded on violence. From the day I was born, it had already been written that in the future I would be sunk up to my neck in the criminal underworld." She paused briefly and twisted the corner of her lip painfully, her eyes locked on the boy's. "You were right when you said that I always ran while everyone around me barely walked...but what choice did they have? What choice did I have? Finding out that I was the one who killed Frenda in this world was a shock at first, but when I look back at the past, my origins, does it really come as something surprising?"
The room was surrounded by silence, and the reason for this was that Shizuri was waiting for Touma to say something, but he remained quiet. A modest gesture with his head made her understand that he was waiting for her to continue, as if he guessed that she still had something to say. And he was right.
"But still, finding that out hurt." Shizuri looked away for a mere moment. "The choice I made that day, in that park, was not easy. I felt like I was denying myself, my blood, my past. And I felt good. For the first time I was being someone I chose to be instead of the person everyone expected of me... and then I find out that in the future I have become an even bigger monster than I was. It's as if all my efforts had been in vain, as if life itself had hit me so hard that it took all the air out of my lungs, throwing me back onto the tracks I should never have left."
"It wasn't you." Touma took a step forward, but he hesitated to continue when Shizuri stepped back, almost leaning against the wall like a cornered prey. "It's like I said, just because someone has the same face as you and even your thought patterns, your memories, doesn't mean you will always make the same choices."
"I would make the same choice." She continued walking backwards, finally having nowhere to go. "Unfortunately, I am not the person you think I am… it was all just an act. The girl you like is nothing but a fake, a fabrication of a person who has been put on edge. The real me is just another member of the 'Mugino' family. A monster, born and raised in the darkness. Violence is part of me, even you can't change that."
This time, she really seemed to have said it all. The boy noticed this too, as he nodded and turned away from her, which made her walk hesitantly back to the center of the room.
"You're right, I guess I can't change that," he said, still nodding. Shizuri felt that weight in her heart suddenly return. "And honestly, I don't need to."
"You... are you giving up?"
It was the first thing that came to mind, and she barely realized that she was speaking aloud. The conversation they had yesterday was still affecting her, so she could only expect the worst from now on.
"I never said I would," he continued harshly, his face rigid, eyes sharp. "Don't you remember? I was silent at that moment."
Her head spun suddenly, memories of that day at the amusement park coming flooding back. That day, his words had burned deep into her soul, and all he said was trying to understand what she was feeling, but what affected her most was that silence. It had been cruel, so much so that she practically begged him to say something.
"I didn't make any choice for you either." Now his tone was becoming calm. "All I said was that it wasn't up to you to decide whether you deserved to be saved or not. And I never showed you any path to follow either, you already knew it and already wanted to walk it, I just promised that I would be with you on it." He stopped talking, bringing his hand up to that spiky hair and staring up at the ceiling, but soon returning to face her with those blue eyes full of darkness. "That day in the tunnel, you were right. I can't save you, but I don't need to."
Touma walked over to her, this time without hesitation. Shizuri's body seemed to be in conflict with her mind, since no matter how hard she tried, it was impossible to get away from him, as if something kept attracting her, as if she were fighting against the opposite polarity of a magnet.
As his hand made contact with her bare shoulder, a jolt of electricity surged through her body, a sensation she knew all too well.
"Something tells me you're strong enough to save yourself," he said, with a gentle smile on his face. "You always have been."
Hearing this, Shizuri felt her chest suddenly become noisy. But the most impressive thing there lay somewhere else, in this case, the boy's eyes. He wasn't looking at her now, he was staring into the emptiness right beside her, a place that in his vision should be empty.
When his vision returned to her eyes, she tilted her head, slowly, involuntarily trying to get closer to him.
"I wish I had found you sooner," Shizuri said. Her lips moved on their own. This is how it felt to her. "I wonder how different my life would be."
"Don't focus on the past. You're doing a good job recently, even without me." And he didn't seem to be talking to Shizuri. "By the way, if you were listening to us this whole time, then you know I don't care about all this family and 'fate' nonsense. You're going to have to try harder if you want to get a reaction out of me, I've seen more darkness than you think, 'Mugino-san'."
Touma's right hand gently touched the top of her head, a gesture that she always found comforting. The touch served as a wake-up call, jolting her out of the daze she didn't even realize she was in. It was all so "right", as if being someone else was her natural state. The thought sent shivers down her spine, but Touma's gentle shake of her head helped to dispel the feeling.
"We'll have a better talk later," he added, still stroking her head. "Just you and me, Mugino Shizuri. I'm sure you still have more to tell me, and I have more to tell you, too. No more secrets, okay?"
x-x
It took a few minutes for Shizuri to pull herself together and organize her thoughts. Now she was sitting in the corner of a room as she watched the demon from before check the symbols drawn one by one to make sure everything was in place. She seemed to be making harsh complaints to Touma, who probably must have accidentally taken something out of place, but their mouths both moved but no sound seemed to come out. The girl was concentrating on something else, in this case herself.
'Are you still there?'
She looked around, but there was no sign of that other girl who had her face, there was no response either. It seemed as if she had never even been there.
'Did he do something at that time?' The question was directed at that girl she could no longer feel. 'He talked to you, didn't he? Answer me, damn it.'
"The adjustments have been made." Qliphah's voice sounded distant, but Shizuri was paying attention now. "Back to your places. Oh, this time it's going to be for real... probably. Heh heh heh" The floating demon stood upside down and placed a hand on her chin. "I should be in a hurry, but since the master would want me to help you with maximum efficiency, I should ask if you don't have something to do before you leave."
"Just take me back to my world," Touma replied, shrugging. "It makes no difference what I do here, or in the worst case, maybe even make things stranger."
"I see, what about you, #4?"
Shizuri stood up from where she was, entering the emerald circle that was indicated by Qliphah. She pulled her cell phone from her pocket, pondering whether to call someone or not.
"Can you give me a minute?" Shizuri decided, dialing the number of her friend from this world and walking toward the balcony.
The girl at the other end of the line seemed busy, since the call had to be redialed and even then she only answered on the third ring.
"Hello, Mugino? Do you need anything?" Takitsubo's voice sounded empty as usual, but one could still notice a hint of concern in the way she spoke.
"Eh... no... it's just that…" Shizuri looked into the dormitory, seeing Qliphah still floating around nonchalantly, but her face was bored. "Takitsubo, I just wanted to thank you for everything. You were very kind from the beginning, so I didn't want to leave without talking to you, sorry for not being in person."
"You're welcome. So you found a way back? That's great. I realized how much it bothered you to stay close to Kamijou without being able to...do 'couple things'. You really love him."
Luckily Takitsubo could not see the girl twist her face into a grimace when she heard this. Even after hearing those words from Touma, she felt insecure.
"I sure do love him." Shizuri gripped the railing, looking out over the city streets below. "Takitsubo, you must have more experience in this 'couple things' than I do so...if I've accidentally screwed up...no, forget it. I still have a lot to talk about with him."
"...Trouble in paradise?" Had that been a chuckle? Maybe just Shizuri's imagination. "Don't overthink it, maybe what you did wasn't so bad."
"I almost killed the two girls who live with him."
"Okay, that sounds pretty bad." The pause Takitsubo took was too long for her liking. "Did you apologize to him?"
"Not really...I made him choose between them and me and...my god, what's gotten into me?"
"Don't panic, every couple goes through fights at some point. If you're sincere with him, he'll forgive you."
"I really still want to kill that girl."
"Forget sincerity, just apologize." One could hear Takitsubo's big sigh on the other end of the line, even though she put her cell phone away. "I have to go now, Hamazura told me he has a lot of plans for us and wants to have a long talk with me. That's kind of weird, he even sounds like someone else."
"Hmm... are you having problems too?"
"Actually, no." The girl giggled, and now it wasn't just imagination, which left Shizuri a little surprised. "He told me something about valuing himself more and that we should find a place of our own. I was a little confused and worried at first but... I don't think I've ever felt so happy after I stopped to think about it."
"Wow. That's great." She smiled, happy for her friend. "Then we better stop talking, go ahead and be a good girlfriend, and thanks for the advice. You're a good friend even here."
"I wish I could hear that more often," she said, her tone suddenly turning somber. But then she cleared her throat loudly, as if to retract what she had just said. "By the way, in the other world, Hamazura and I... well, you know."
"Huh? No, you don't even know each other as far as I know." Shizuri put an evil smile on her face, an idea had just formed. "I can take care of that."
"What? No, no. That's not what I meant!"
"Relax, I can create a plan to make it natural. I just need -"
"Okay, do whatever you want, but I didn't ask you for anything!" One could imagine the girl blushing and waving her hands frantically. All imagination of course. "Do I need to do the same for you here?"
"Not even if you wanted to. I asked #5 to erase the memories of my coming here from as many people as possible. It's for the best."
"Are you sure this was a good idea? Frankly, I liked having you as a close friend for these few days, you always tend to talk more with Kinuhata than with me lately, unlike before... like the old days, when ITEM was still forming. Come to think of it, you're right, it's easier to get over that way."
"You know," Shizuri gave a forced little laugh. "This world isn't so bad. At least one of us got what she wanted. Goodbye Takitsubo, enjoy your happy ending, I'm going after mine."
There was nothing more to be said. Putting away her phone and straightening the clothes she was wearing, she looked around once more to make sure that the other her had nothing more to say. That girl hid herself completely, even making it seem as if she had never been there to begin with, as if everything was really just an invention of her head. But that wasn't the case, not entirely.
The ritual needed to continue, so Shizuri followed Qliphah's instructions and focused on making her mind clear, free of thoughts that would get in the way.
"I hope we don't have to postpone anything else this time," Qliphah complained, once again making sure that everything was in place. "Now relax. You two are in good sync, so we shouldn't have any problems this time."
"I hope so," said Touma, "thank Accelerator for me once again."
"I'll have to decline that request. Heh Heh." The demon girl shrugged, not wanting to elaborate. "Ready or not, time for a change of worlds."
Just as before, it was too fast for Shizuri to notice. The light changed, flashing so brightly that she could not resist the temptation to close her eyes. And then came the darkness, cold and creeping, stretching out in front of her, infinite and static.
But it seemed different this time.
She could move very well, although she felt so sleepy. Her body was so heavy, and her head a little cloudy. But she felt softness there, just below her body. It took a few seconds for her to realize that she was lying on a bed, one she knew very well. This was where she had given her first lap pillow to the person she loved.
"Did it work?" she looked around, with heavy breathing and watchful eyes. "I came back?"
Nothing seemed out of place. That was Touma's room, the luxurious room he refused to get used to, to call his own.
The pain in her head began to subside, her eyes now drifted to the only person there, lying beside her. He was peaceful, his breathing soft and steady. Shizuri let a bright smile light up her face.
Without thinking once, her hand went to those thorns, and her lips touched the skin of his forehead.
"Huumm... Shizu-chan?" he stirred as he felt the touch of her lips. "Changed your mind, eh? I knew you wouldn't be able to resist."
And then she realized an important detail. Touma's voice was incredibly drunk. It made her tilt her head and think for just a moment, checking the time on the phone she pulled out of her pocket.
"It's still the same day." Surprise slid across her face. "Only a few minutes later, how strange."
"What's strange, Shizu-chan?" He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her to lie down beside him. "Did you have a weird dream too? In mine, I was in another world. Can you believe it? Or maybe I was hallucinating from drinking too much?" He closed his eyes, his voice not only sounding drunk, but tired too.
"Don't worry about that now," she said, going back to stroking his hair. "Get one rest now, when you wake up again and deal with that hangover, we'll have to talk some more."
"Talk?" He smiled in a silly way. "That 'kind of talk'? I can't wait."
It seems that his last energies had been used up, as he simply 'turned off', scrambling on the bed to find a comfortable spot and falling asleep soon after.
Shizuri put a pillow under his head, and then covered him with the warm, comfortable sheet she herself had chosen for him. Coming back to this world seemed to have had an immediate effect on her, as she felt so good that she couldn't stop smiling when looking at this boy's face. Too bad that when he woke up, he would remember that it had not all been a dream, and the horrible things she had said and done would become a problem they had to deal with.
This was no time to coddle him now, no matter how much she wanted to. If the day hadn't changed, then that girl still needed to be stopped. Shizuri didn't know the details of her plan, but that was all the more reason to act quickly.
It was time to clear all doubts, to face the one person who was certainly responsible for all of this. She stood up, straightening her posture, raising her head. One last look was cast at the boy, as if to reaffirm her decision.
"I'm going," she said, partly to herself, partly to the boy there, "You are part of all this, so I won't stop you if you want to intervene. I won't let a 'goddess' tell me what to do, but just rest for now, my beloved. I will lead the way for you."
The door behind her was closed. Time to remove the obstacle in her chosen path.
A/N: Hey there! And with this chapter finished, we are going back to the other world. The climax of the arc starts in the next chapter, so we will have some action.
Now about this chapter. We had a small appearance from our number 1, Shizuri discovered something terrible about Touma, and we had an important but still incomplete conversation.
Just to be clear, Shizuri has not seen all of the infinite hells. She didn't even see 1% of it, not even close, but it was enough to make her lose her mind temporarily. And yes, they will talk about it in the future, but it will still take a little while.
The confrontation against April is approaching. At this point, I think I've given enough hints about what her connection to Touma is. But I hope it's not so obvious.
By the way, some people seem interested in what I commented about a sequel to this fic. Honestly, it's just something that crossed my mind and I don't really have anything concrete, so I'll decide about that later. When this story ends it will be over 400k words long, which is relatively quite long, especially considering that this is primarily a ship fic, so seeing people still interested in a sequel genuinely makes me happy.
But I have said too much already, better look at the reviews:
5queso:I'm glad you like the longer chapters. So my decision not to split it was right, maybe I will write some longer chapters then. This one passed the 10k mark, and the next one will probably pass as well. Once in a while I like to overdo the emotions a bit, but it seems that this chapter was well received, good to know. Thank you very much as always.
Xellos540: ;Unfortunately, she won't appear anymore...but the Kinuhata from the other world will still appear.
;About Frenda, are you talking about Hamazura complaining to Shizuri in NT12? He was a little too vague and Touma was kinda distracted, so it was a little ambiguous.
;He was still alive in GT7, so probably yes, here it is "a bit" later after all.
;That about Touma not liking to see the world "his way" is a subtle reference to a scene at the end of the New Testament.
;Shizuri saw a nice achievement in this chapter, don't you think? I think I will write a scene about Touma telling Shizuri about some of his adventures.
;She fought Kakine once again and even admitted that his power is absurd in the new testament. One of my favorite lines from her is "They say not even death can cure an idiot. Well, it looks like nothing can cure you of being pathetic. You're powerful, but you're pathetic." At least she is excellent at trash talking LOL. I simply love that it was Takitsubo who saved her ass here afterwards.
;That thing about the "stash" was completely made up. But who knows, maybe he really does. Touma is very attracted to female doctors, more precisely school doctors. He has a little speech about this while he was talking to Luca.
;The fight against Hamazura is mentioned out loud by Shizuri herself.
;LOL, Index is good at basically any game she tries, we have seen this more than once in the novels.
;xD One tidbit, Kinuhata and Shizuri make these kinds of banter with each other in the new testament. Kinuhata teasing her as always, and Shizuri being Shizuri.
;She could even ask, but Hamazura would not be helpful here, he himself admits that he knows almost nothing about Touma.
;I think the original metaphor is more on par with how Hamazura feels about himself in canon. Here an excerpt: He was a disposable tool to keep Item running smoothly. He was someone who faced in the same direction as someone else to gain the same justification they had. He was someone without a "self". This is from NT15. Just to be clear, it's not what I think of him, it's what he thinks of himself.
;Touma defending Hamazura here would defeat the whole purpose of telling him to have a "sense of self". Him setting an example by defending himself against Shizuri's criticism makes more sense as a subtle way of making him understand.
;Impostor syndrome, the return.
;Yes.
;Yeah, a hug for sure.
;The "Third-act breakup" trope it's not one that I particularly enjoy in romance stories, so no, it won't happen.
;As I said, it is ambiguous in NT12, so I left it kinda ambiguous here too.
;In her view, saying "So, I tried to kill this guy you don't even know in our world three times" is not something very effective. She hardly knows what is going on with Touma anyway.
;… NT12... ambiguous…
;Does NT9 count? Will-chan is an excellent therapist.
;Touma randomly asking Accel for help for something like this, here's something I would really appreciate. That's always like... his last option or something close to it. We have NT22R, kinda counts, I guess.
;You were right about clonoth. Shake magic? Are you talking about the holistic feat? Odd term.
;Thank you very much :)
;But she is not a villain, I just said that she seems one for the relationship of the two, from Shizuri's point of view of course.
KHVSFF: I am glad to know that I still impress after so much has happened. This of trying to make Mugino and Shizuri look alike but different so that they learn about each other is something I really enjoyed writing, so glad you liked it. I had planned fewer moments between them, but I got carried away LOL. The scene of Shizuri finding out about Frenda was a bit longer, but I thought I had overdone the drama so I toned it down a bit, it seems I was wrong. Thank you. Touma made the play of the game here. It's cool that you mentioned "three", considering that Touma spoke directly to the other Mugino here in this chapter, my boy doesn't fail even with imaginary girls. Thanks, I could use a bit of good fortune. As for the sequel, I haven't given much thought to its content yet, but knowing that there are people interested is sparking some ideas. See you next time!
DoubleA: That reaction made me very happy. Misfortune continues to pursue our "hero," but good things will come as well. When I was writing this scene, I had to keep going without stopping until it was finished. It was a bit strange to write because I couldn't tell whether I was enjoying it or not. I just wanted to finish and move on to thinking about another scene. They now have even more to talk about, but first Shizuri has to settle things with a certain girl. Thank you very much. If I do decide to write a sequel, it might take a while after this fic ends. Perhaps a few months, but seeing this enthusiasm is helping me think more about it. :)
We are in the final stretch of the arc. Will we have a happy ending? Do you remember that girl who wasn't saved? Uiharu has something important to share in the next chapter. And that's all for today. Nio leaving.