Full Summary:
Inside the reconstructed world, life moves on. But not everyone is fooled by the new peace.
During her investigation, Kokonoe is approached by Relius Clover. To her surprise, he leaves behind two things for her—a way to gain access to data recorded in the deleted Embryo, and the other being the Susanoo Unit. She later finds it not as empty as she thought it was. But what use does she have for the flickering remains of a soul?
Meanwhile, a man whose name the world has forgotten wanders into Kagutsuchi, finding himself pulled in by a strange familiarity. Little does he know, trouble awaits him inside, both old and new. Imitations of an inescapable past greet him wherever he goes…
Let the chaos begin anew. A post-CF story.
Important Author's Note: This work has non-linear chapters, but only for certain parts. I'll let you figure it out. Chapter length will also be as long as needed, and there is some unreliable narration. This entire project has been a true breath of fresh air to work on. Thanks for reading and enjoy :)
Her deep, rosy red hair swung to the rhythm of her steps along with the sleeve of her uniform. The night had reduced the amount of foot traffic, but there were still a number of officers dotted around. Like her, they walked with a determined pace as they carried papers and messages to their respective superiors.
Tsubaki, clutching a small stack of papers under her arm, turned a corner towards the wings dedicated for office rooms.
The absence of people in this part was made known to her without having to look around, as she could only hear her own footsteps echo now. It was a newly-added section to the already expansive building, hence why few officers had been assigned there currently.
Past the tall windows lining the sides of the hallway, faint moonlight streamed in behind a curtain of water droplets. Beyond the glass, an unobstructed view from the Hierarchical City's highest level presented itself.
She slowed herself down. It wouldn't hurt to admire the ambience alone in silence while she could. The sight of the waning moon peek out from behind murky clouds conjured up thoughts of the Duodecim.
Among them were her own family, the esteemed Yayoi. Although she was a soldier, she still had an obligation to drop by the estate much like she had done during her academy days. The time she reserved aside then was dedicated to visiting her family and resting, but her recent conversation with her father had left a lasting bitterness in her chest.
For the first time in a long while, she and her father had a disagreement. Just seeing the crease of disapproval on his brow under the pressure of his gaze, the study room they spoke in felt as imposing as when she was much smaller.
Letting out a quiet sigh, she looked up ahead. Her destination was nearing close.
But before her thoughts went wandering again, the strange sensation of being watched froze her in her steps. Quickly raising her guard, Tsubaki's head turned around in search of who had been looking her way.
But she found nobody, not even a single hint of a figure outside either.
"…"
The night had perhaps tired her out more than she realized.
Nearly as fast as she had been put on alert, Tsubaki calmed down and continued on her way. Wherever it came from, the onlooker hadn't given off any signs of being malicious.
A couple of strides later, she arrived in front of a pair of doors. The yellowish glow from a desk lamp shone through the frosted glass mosaic adorning its centers. With the reports in one hand, she raised her other to knock. Her knuckles tapped against the solid surface precisely two times to announce her presence.
Tsubaki waited for a response, but she heard none. After a second round of knocking, she strained her ears. No sound came from the other side, so there must be no meeting of any sorts taking place inside the office.
Wanting to get those papers delivered sooner than later, she put a hand around the door handle and twisted it. "Pardon me…" she said in a low voice as she let herself into the office.
Seated at the main desk across the vast room was her current superior, Major—no, that wasn't right anymore—Lieutenant Colonel, Jin Kisaragi.
Not long ago, he had been promoted. With the new rank came new responsibilities, so both of them had to transfer to another section of the headquarters.
"Sir?" Stepping in closer, Tsubaki was curious at his lack of response.
A lamp stood at the corner of the table's surface, illuminating the room. The light reflected off of Jin's hair while he had his head propped up against his knuckles. The steady pattern of his breathing and his closed eyelids were much clearer to see once she got near.
Realizing he had fallen asleep, she put a hand up to her mouth to hush her surprised gasp. Lowering the tips of her fingers, she then squeezed them. After mulling over on the best course of action, she headed towards her secretarial desk. It seemed like she would have to give the reports to him at a later time.
Just when the papers made contact with the tabletop, she caught the sound of him shifting his position.
"Hm? ...Tsubaki?" As if he had never been asleep at all, he sat up to look at her without any lethargy.
Turning around to face him, she couldn't help but smile. "Jin-niisama! My apologies for taking so long." Only because they were alone did he call her that, so she responded in kind. She would die of embarrassment if anyone outside her friends heard her call her own military senior in such a childish and familiar way while on duty.
"No, you returned sooner than I expected. I should be the one apologizing for dozing off." He extended a hand to accept the papers from her.
Tsubaki let out a laugh as she walked over to his side. Admittedly, she too would have a difficult time resisting the lulling sound of rain at such a late hour.
For a moment, Jin flipped through some of the pages.
As his assistant, she already had a general idea of its content. She then saw him set the reports down behind a stack of paper sheets which stood nearly four times as thick. Those were due to be looked at first beforehand.
On a normal day, the top of his desk would be clear of any form of clutter. Recently, however, things were different. After moving to their newly-assigned office location, everything had to be put back into their proper place. All around them, shelves and cabinets sat half-empty. Boxes filled with miscellaneous documents and office supplies remained sealed, pushed to the foot of their tables.
The moving process had also been temporarily complicated by Noel's resignation, leaving Tsubaki to take over her responsibilities. It was pure chance she knew the former secretary's note-taking and organizational habits, making the transfer easier than most of that type.
Adding to the whirlwind of events was her upcoming promotion not proceeding as smoothly as it should. Because she had switched divisions so abruptly, it delayed the process while putting a limit on her military class. Yet such a setback didn't bother Tsubaki in the slightest. A new rank added nothing to her current position.
Still standing by his side, Tsubaki asked, "Shall we get started then?"
Jin nodded.
He had always been the type of person to have a sizable amount of work done ahead of time. His diligence could be considered difficult to keep up with by some, but it was no problem for her after plenty of practice. Recalling their days at the Military Academy, she returned to her desk with a lighter heart.
As he began checking approval forms for soldiers under his unit, Tsubaki took the opportunity to begin her own duties. One of which was to record and organize his meetings in the most optimal way. Following that, she had to help sort through the papers flowing in and out of the room on a daily basis once more. "You're to make an appearance and speak to the graduating students at Torifune in two week's time. So I'll arrange for the check-in meeting with the Intelligence subdivision to happen between the lecture and the reconstruction committee hearings. Will that be acceptable?"
And so, they spent the rest of the night in each other's company, chipping away at the paperwork.
When early morning came and the rain subsided, the progress they made went beyond their initial plan. The surface of his desk had been cleared up of the papers overdue for reviewing. All that remained were the report she had returned with hours ago and the files awaiting in the boxes. Wearied as she felt, the satisfaction of the end result made up for the effort.
After fetching some tea and snacks for the both of them, Tsubaki breathed out slowly. Clutching a hot mug in her hands at her seat, she stared out at the windows. Past the few drops of water still making their way down and the mountain ranges in the horizon, the sun had begun to rise. "…"
"Is something on your mind?"
She turned her head with a start. "W-were you saying something?"
"I wasn't." After taking a sip, Jin set his drink down. "I simply thought that you seemed...dejected."
"Oh, did I?" Her tiredness made her dwell on troubled thoughts again. Her hands clenched. She had been reluctant to share, but having Jin lend an ear was a hard opportunity to pass up. "Well, it's…about my father. We haven't seen each other eye to eye since I've left home."
She had been on track to becoming a major—at such a young age no less, an achievement that rivaled Jin's. Reaching that rank meant a great deal for her career, and it was the high marks expected of her as the sole heir to the powerful Yayoi lineage.
Despite that, Tsubaki had requested to be moved to the Fourth Thaumaturgist Squadron. With the Librarium being in a dire mess and needing to fill in the holes that have opened up within their common fighting ranks, management eagerly accepted her transfer. To be removed from a notable position and put under service as a secretary—unsurprisingly, some people would see this as a demotion.
In her father's point of view, her new post limited her potential and was of no use for serving the Imperator. Furthermore, he took issue with her superior officer.
Under normal circumstances, the surname Jin carried should have relieved her family's concerns on her transfer. The Kisaragi and the Yayoi had a historically unique relationship in that they held each other in rather high regard within the Duodecim. In spite of that, the recent news related to Jin's condition had soured her father's opinion of him.
"I see." Jin crossed his arms. As someone aware of the Yayoi leader's reputation, he should understand her. "What are you planning to do then? Returning to the Zeroth division would be the most logical solution."
"I refuse!" The liquid in her cup sloshed around as she answered with more fierceness than she had intended. Realizing the sudden brazenness, Tsubaki dipped her head down in apology. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be so loud. What I wanted to say was that I'll have to decline your suggestion. I…I have no intentions of going anywhere in the near future. This is the path I've chosen, and I accept the consequences that result from it."
He stared back at her, warmth appearing in his eyes. "Of course. If that's what you've set your mind on, then I won't dissuade you from staying."
"Th-thank you." The way he readily accepted her choice without further discussion gave her a feeling of reassurance unlike any other. Tea still in hand, Tsubaki looked down into it as an epiphany hit her. "Now that I said it out loud… Hah, perhaps it was ridiculous to let it bother me so much when I've already made up my mind. I-I apologize for bringing up such a frivolous topic…"
Returning his line of sight to the steam rising from his cup, Jin spoke with a light smile, "I don't have a problem with it if you simply want to talk, no matter what it's about. Mind you, we're also on break right now, Tsubaki. It's good for you to relax."
A soft heat crept up beneath the skin of her cheeks. This had been a frequent occurrence ever since her younger days, which she had learnt to temper with discipline and time spent apart after he had graduated. Yet, it felt like all her training had gone away now that she worked with him, even more so when she saw signs of him thawing from the stone-cold facade he gained in Ikaruga.
With no proper way to answer him coming to mind, Tsubaki settled with an agreeing hum as she brought her tea to her mouth. She felt relieved that Jin took no notice of her fluster.
It was only when she recomposed herself that she saw his steely gaze oddly focused ahead, suddenly lost in his own thoughts. She allowed some time to pass before she tried to bring his attention back to reality. "Jin-niisama, what's wrong?"
He didn't seem to be all too bothered by her voice, eventually breaking the silence. "…There's something I must tell you. And you'll be the first to hear it."
"Yes?" The manner in which he said it made her body tensen, bracing for what was to follow.
Closing his eyes briefly, he then exhaled slowly before saying, "It's about Yukianesa."
At the mention of his sword, Tsubaki noticed the weapon was nowhere to be found. It usually sat atop a cabinet or leaned against his chair. Wherever and whenever, Jin always had it close at hand. "D-did something happen? Where is it?"
A displeased frown formed on his face. "To put it simply, I don't know. Yukianesa vanished from my grasp almost an entire day ago, and it has since refused to answer my summons."
Her lips pressed firmly together before she parted them to speak. "That's—! I can't believe it… Did it truly vanish without a single trace? Have you found the cause?"
"No need for immediate concern, Tsubaki." Just as he said that, he eased his own expression. "I've done some guesswork, which may or may not be true. Because Yukianesa's voice has been rather quiet as of late, I'm inclined to believe that its purpose had been fulfilled after slaying the Black Beast. Thus, it has switched to a dormant state and is unable to materialize to another location."
Once she heard his theory, she found it plausible. But even if he recovered it, it wouldn't change a harsh truth.
There was a secret only Tsubaki and a few other people knew of—that Jin couldn't fight or wield any type of grimoire anymore. After the calamitous appearance of the Black Beast, the injuries he sustained combined with the strain of pushing his abilities past the limit had left his body weakened and permanently unable to use any complex form of ars magus. By extension, it meant he could no longer activate the Nox Nyctores.
The fact that he had stayed in the Ars Magi Infantry branch was largely due to him being a renowned figurehead who dealt the finishing blow. To maintain morale in the NOL and the public after the terrible battle, he was made to stay instead of being honorably discharged.
The news of the weapon disappearing agitated Tsubaki for another reason outside of the sword being a Nox Nyctores. Although useless as an actual weapon in his hands, the sword served as a signature item for Jin's image. More importantly, Yukianesa was the only personal belonging he had when he joined the Kisaragi family. Finding what happened to it was imperative for his sake, stolen or not.
Tsubaki asked, "Do you think it will return soon?"
He shook his head. "But I still feel a connection. It simply won't respond to me."
"Jin-niisama, I know you're busy, so you can task me to direct an investigation team in your stead. The sooner we recover Yukianesa, the better it'll be!"
His gaze shot her way before casting it down again. "Right, I would also prefer to have it returned to me. However…"
"However?" It then occurred to her that his demeanor held little to no sense of urgency.
"Even if we do successfully retrieve it, there is no guarantee it won't vanish again or that it'll respond to me like before," said Jin matter-of-factly.
Tsubaki swallowed, remembering there was little to be done if the sword chose to abandon him as its wielder. "I understand… So, shall I go to report this?"
"There's no need. I've already warned the higher ups about Yukianesa's fading presence, so I'll be the one to tell them." The look in his eyes, although suppressed, told he was anything but ecstatic to announce his loss of the Nox Nyctores.
"All right." Not letting her rapidly cooling tea go to waste, she drained the rest of it.
To say she felt shaken when she had first learnt that Jin could no longer fight was not too off the mark. Even now, a heartache rose up whenever she thought about it. At the very least, he was alive and well.
Of all people, Jin himself should be the one most upset. Yet, he didn't show any kind of regret, as if he had already known the result of fighting against the Black Beast. His calm exterior and reassuring words stopped her from shedding more tears than she ought to as a military officer.
From the corner of Tsubaki's vision, she saw him stand up. She raised her head from staring at the bottom of her empty cup. "Are you heading to the communication room now?" This type of news didn't belong to the public ear, so the usage of relay lines encrypted with special ars magus was a necessity.
"Yes, I want to get this over with and resume our normal duties."
"Of course, sir." By the time he reached for the door, Tsubaki left her desk to follow him.
As she walked after him, all she could see was his back. The sight brought memories of some of her happiest days surrounded by friends, blissfully unaware of the outside world and the trials awaiting them in the future.
Unlike before, however, she now carried more reasons to be working as his assistant outside of simple admiration. She was no longer being blindly moved by her family's and the Librarium's demands. As a user of the Zero-Type Izayoi, she had to be mindful of the importance of her abilities. Only a decree from the Imperator themselves or orders from a general would convince her to leave Jin's side, but only barely.
For the time being, Tsubaki hoped she would get to stay. If he could stand with his head held high after sacrificing the skills he spent most of his life honing for the sake of the world, then she would draw strength from his show of fortitude and fight on his behalf.
As long as their paths in this world aligned, she would act as his blade in justice. As he had shown her light many times in the past, this was her chance at paying that eternal debt.
It was a silent oath, sworn in honor of the promise made to one another during their lonely childhoods.