Painted Prison Chronicles

by Sparity Ikari

When Kamijou Touma and Gokusai sisters reunite after a long while, things certainly go crazy for all of them when they found themselves living together through random twists of fate. In their daily life, Touma, Amazora, Kaibi, and Rikuri will learn about each other, with their light, darkness, and pasts revealed. Among the misfortune, comedy, and romance, their bonds blossom anew!

40. Chapter 40

PAINTED PRISON CHRONICLES

CHAPTER 40

SILENCE AFTER THE THUNDER

I am back. I think relatively quick, at least faster than the last time. And I think the time of my work was fruitful. This chapter is definitely more in tone to the earlier parts of the story, but with more developed cast and world, so I have good hope for it.

I am happy that quite a few people were pleased with last chapter. Like I said, it wasn't perfect, and I completely held back my expectations. One could say it was very much experimental. But even if not all, many elements worked in opionion of sizeable sample and I am happy for that.

Anyway, this story is 40 chapters long already. Wow, time surely flies fast. In two or three weeks I will also have 2nd anniversary of beginning to work on it. What can I say, it is such a fun ride and I am very excited for what future can offer for it. Even if it may take longer breaks, it will march forward, providing (hopefully) good and fun read for all of you, my wonderful readers. As always, I send humble gratitude towards your way and hope that you enjoy this journey as much as I do.

We move slightly (not 100 % but in vast majority) over Kamijou No Touma's plotline, but we still have a lot of stories, issues, and plotlines to deal with on the way to the future. To keep structure more coherent, I restrained myself to keep Future Phase more relevant went the story goes to later phases (although quite few things from there may be relevant sooner, so some cameos may happen). Right now, Touma goes through aftermath of his battle, and is getting ready for the future.

I think I have no further announcements right here, except maybe that if it happens that if next chapter takes a month, please be patient. I don't plan for it too, but as there is a lot of academic stuff to write for me right now (between April and May) work may get slightly delayed. But let's not jinx it yet.

For more trivia goodness, check the notes at the bottom. And now to the Q&A:

DarkMatter69: That's a good coincidence, I actually wished to start Monogatari series from quite sometime. Your comment surely serves as a great motivation to make time for it.

kuroshiragami0: That chapter had a deeper magical lore than many others. I am glad about those references too.

Izuku Tokiwa: This was a scenario of how the battle could be. I think there is something poetic about KNT beginning his life anew with Index in Omega World.

BlueJack22: I am glad you liked the idea. This way, KNT won't bother others but can be the star of his own story anew, like he wanted.

Averege Stuffy: Othi's geas (deal with Nephthys) will be a valid plotpoint. And that fight was so imagination-stimulating, it was a great experience writing it.

Majin Othinus: Like I said, I didn't realize that Dragon Queen was that off-putting to you. But nevertheless, I will try to continue with it, maybe it will get better for you as time passes by and I will build the concept around it better.

Amatsumi: Great question. I doubt that even Kamachi knows by that point :)

FingFangFoom100: I am glad you liked the fights. Like I said, I specialize in introspection and emotional dialogues, or at least so I was told. So hearing that my action writing improved a little bit is a big positive to me. And Mei is really nice, I just liked the potential of her ability so I wanted to use her. Rin and Ladylee will not fight again, this was three times a charm deal, but it was crucial that it was this matchup specifically. KNT ending is something I personally really enjoyed writing, it is also one of my favourite arc endings in this story so far (for a character).

Zatil Hidyah Spensa: I am glad to have a fellow Ben 10 fan here. I have the good memories from the past with that show.

Fullbreaker: I am happy you appreciate the differences in that chapter. Neph is life, of course she deserves prominence! As I said, I also think KNT ending is bittersweet and poetic. There is a lot to see, also including Transcendents, so stay put and enjoy!

Without further delay, let's get into it!

"I am sorry I couldn't be faster" Touma muttered over Fukiyose Seiri's bed" This shouldn't have happened. I made him pay for that, but you still was hurt so badly. I wish I coul-owowowow!"

"Stop talking over my bed as if I was at the death's door or worse" Fukiyose muttered, her eyebrows knitting even though she didn't open her eyes, as she grabbed Touma by the wrist in annoyance" You don't see me moping around about it, so stop acting like that. I am alive, I just lost critical amount of blood and have to rest to recover it. Hear me? I am just slightly weakened"

"For a weakened person, you are certainly crushing my hand in a very unconvincing manner" Touma half-joked, fearing that his wrist may dislocate at any moment.

Even though she acted like that, the girl had a low fever and was confined to bed due to exhaustion caused by injury.

Fukiyose sighed and remained silent for a moment, before adding in a softer tone.

"Thanks for visiting me."

"Are you kidding? You got hurt because of my mess. I was so glad that you woke up... I had to make sure you are alright"

Another sigh, this time followed by a small smile.

"I see. Also..."

She trailed off, before opening her eyes.

There was a rather uncharacteristic look of weary concern within them, replacing the harsh bravado they usually emanated.

"That imposter resembling you... that person who stabbed me... you confronted him, right?"

Touma didn't say anything, but she took it as confirmation anyway.

"You know, this is what I was worried about" she elaborated" before I could be honest with you, when I hid everything within myself. That you will confront someone like that and do something stupid"

"Well, I wasn't alone this time. And I was pulled back before I could lose myself"

"Still... why do I feel that the moment you leave my sight, something horrible happens to you?" she mumbled, her eyes wandering aimlessly in melancholy" I swear, not being able to just punch your problems away is so frustrating..."

Touma didn't really know how to reassure her since it was kind of true.

But then Fukiyose asked something unexpected.

"Back then, when he stabbed me, I think he said something about you understanding why he did it... as it was retribution of some sort..."

"You don't have to think about it. That guy was a master of taunting. It means nothing" Touma said quickly.

Fukiyose didn't miss his eyes being averted and pressed on.

"That wound... it mirrors another one, right? I don't know how it's possible, but... I hurt you... in that way... somehow?"

"Fukiyose, that's not..."

"I-I know it sounds stupid... I don't remember doing anything like that, ever... but we live in this city... and we both know that there are ways to cover something up, to make someone do things they wouldn't normally do and make them forget... you are all... well-acquainted with Mental Out, apparently, so you would know. But if anything happened... and you kept me unaware of it to not cause problems, like you do... I am sorry...you know that I would never hurt you. Not like this. You know that, right?"

"Fukiyose-"

"You know that, right?"

Something new entered the girl's voice. It was still strong, but it also carried a pleading tone. As if she wanted to reaffirm that he still had faith in her, that the bond they shared wasn't fabricated. The grip on his hand also strengthened accordingly.

Touma opened his mouth, moved his tongue in it, unsure what to say, before simply responding.

"I know. I always knew"

"So... did I actually hurt you?"

"That... wasn't you"

"But it was supposed to be?"

"It's complicated"

Fukiyose stared at him. He knew that she knew that he had some secrets he was reluctant to share, but didn't press on, apparently giving him more space to share on his own. Instead, she only asked:

"So what was it, actually?"

"A..." Touma paused, before sighing and resuming" A bad dream of what could have been, that I saw a very, very, very long time ago"

"A dream? A vision?" Fukiyose echoed" Well, it's good that we cleared up the tension so you don't have to have them anymore. Also, when you say things like that, you sound kind of mature and old"

Touma's gaze flickered only for a second or two, his eyes growing distant, before he smiled and scratched his head.

"Really? I guess this Kamijou really sounds like an old man, with how much misfortune he deals with"

"Honestly..." Fukiyose huffed with a small smile" You are so complicated sometimes, for idiot like this"

"Well... I guess I bothered you long enough..."

However, Fukiyose grabbed his hoodie and tugged on it.

"Stay a moment longer." she commanded.

"But I should-"

"D-Don't make me spell it out. Sit down"

"Y-Yes, ma'am"

Fukiyose not being satisfied with the duration of his visits seemed a recurring theme nowadays.

(FEW DAYS EARLIER)

The meeting came and go.

Touma was relieved to see that Hokaze Junko was alright after her fight. Apparently, she was intently questioned by Misaki, who displayed almost maternal levels of overprotective worry. Usually, their attitudes were reversed.

But back to the place that Touma reunited with Junko and others. Accelerator made a short and dry congratulatory speech through video call (although, to quote 'I will settle on the fact that nobody fucked up spectacularly' was very specific praise) and people got to randomly exchanging experiences of last battles.

As for things that seemed important... firstly, Kanzaki's questioning had to be postponed since the Saint sneaked outside of the hospital and wasn't seen since. Itsuwa, who was the first person Touma asked, had no clue. And back then, it didn't occur to him to ask either Uiharu or Accelerator for the monitoring clues.

Whatever it was, Kanzaki had to have a reason to suddenly disappear. Touma had a feeling that he would know soon, next time they would meet. Because usually he never had to work his head over trouble, it came to him. He just hoped the trouble wasn't of murderous, world-ending kind, and that Kanzaki was alright.

Meanwhile, Hamazura apparently had an accidental encounter with both Ayu and Umidori, when they were attacked by an unknown assailant. He told Touma that someone else could have their sights on Ayu, confirming the suspicions both them and Accelerator shared.

"Kuroyoru is bound to explode if her ego gets inflating like this" Hamazura joked.

Bomber Lance apparently took her last defeat at the hands of Sukemi Rin very seriously and this time defended Ayu proficiently and drove off the attack.

"But how was it conducted?" Touma asked" Who was it? And why?"

Hamazura sighed, looking apologetic.

"Look, I wish I knew. But that's just it. I don't, because it was dark and apparently, they were masked. I arrived at the scene only it was almost over, and even if I was on high alert, it was an accident, cause I went to pick up something for Kinuhata and Takitsubo. All I know is that Mitsuari-san was grazed by something, and Kuroyoru retaliated almost instantly. There were attempts to attack again, but she was so tenacious that whoever it was, fled"

Touma grit his teeth.

"But Ayu still isn't safe..."

"I know what you are thinking" his friend tried to reassure him in some way" That dark side of yours did have a tendency to draw in some psychos, but now that he is gone..."

"No, no, no..." Touma shook his head in thought" Hamazura, if there is anything I know well in this life, it's bad luck. And as a general rule of bad luck, if you think you know how bad a situation is, it is always worse. There are still missing pieces here... and there is someone running around there... maybe you are right, maybe they were connected with that guy and now that he is gone, it will all vanish. But what if it's something different altogether?"

Hamazura patted Touma's shoulder.

"Well, if something does come up, give me heads up. I don't have a strange right hand or ability to throw anything back at an opponent, but I know my share of tough fight."

"I would never forget that" Touma grinned, as he smiled back" And you never let me forget that too."

(LATER)

Hokaze Junko was discharged. Kongou Mitsuko also got clearance to go, but still visited hospital to chat with Touma, Shokuhou clique, and Misaka Mikoto, with two girls' visits often coinciding.

Misaka took the abridged version of his exploits relatively well. She lashed out at him only once, and Kongou was there to pacify her. Those two had good effect on one another it seemed.

So this time he wasn't actually scorched from surprised electric attack and managed to get a serious conversation with Mikoto. She was upset that she wasn't involved but understood the circumstances.

Touma also felt a twinge of guilt. It really seemed that Mikoto was genuinely worried about him. Almost like...

He frowned. No, wait...

Could it be? Now that he thought about it, did Misaka was actually gentler to him. Sure, she still got mad, but... less frequently. And for greater part of the time, she drilled him on the topic of missing out on the action. Still annoyed, but the reasoning was different.

'We were actually apart for a while now... did that... actually worked on favour of our relationship?'

Maybe sometimes less could be the future's more.

He also enjoyed seeing Mikoto in good mood with her friends.

They also visited him.

Saten, initially also worried but putting on her brightest smile, smuggled him a beautifully smelling homemade soup, with both vegetables and meat. Her caring aura was almost too much for his eyes to bear. She also had an obvious intent of feeding him, but the sulking faces of Mitsuko and Mikoto got a little too dark and gloomy for Touma's comfort to take that risk.

Shirai also graced him with a visit. Similarly to Kongou when he first awoke, she apparently had some plans regarding apple she brought with herself.

What exactly this could possibly entail, Touma never learned because, upon seeing him, the twin tailed teleporter got a little red, and after crossing and uncrossing her arms for a moment, she groaned and ended up throwing the apple straight at Touma, muttering 'You survived, good' before running off.

As the apple smashed hard into his cheek, Kamijou Touma actually felt okay with this. Some form of balance in the universe was apparently preserved. Besides, in older times, when given a choice between throwing an apple and a knife, Kuroko would probably choose the latter, which would land dangerously close to his crotch.

The hardest interaction out of the four was with Uiharu Kazari, given the events that took place. She visited Touma a couple of times, and while she was officially visiting to see him, Touma knew she longed for explanation. Because when it came to Rin...

It took a while for her to awaken and when she did, things turned even more complicated. Everyone expected that with defeat of Kamijou No Touma, the one who artificially split girl's mind in the first place, Rin would go back to normal. But that didn't happen.

Surely, the violent personality was apparently shaken and subdued after defeat by both Junko and Ladylee. She made no attempt to escape as of yet. The doctors nicknamed her Shadow. Touma thought that it was rather lazy and on the nose, but it apparently had a deeper meaning, referring to something called jungian psychoanalisis and archetypes. Shadow was a representation of suppressed instinct and craving, hiding and overshadowed by main psyche's light. At least, according to Othinus and Index.

But since the case of Sukemi Rin deviated from expectations, she was kept to be analyzed and studied. Touma remembered that Uiharu almost fainted when she heard that, but Heaven Canceller assured her that he will keep an eye on Rin until the details of her condition were clearer.

Touma knew he didn't spend as much time with Uiharu as with Misaka, Shirai, or even Saten. But he did his best to cheer her up. He started by explaining what exactly occurred in the events revolving around Rin and his other self, trying to make it as understandable as he could.

It was hard. But he felt it was necessary and that throughout it, he got somewhat closer to Uiharu too.

"That makes sense" Uiharu said sadly at one of those conversations" She would be one to get into such temptations... but I never expected her to go so far"

"You are... second cousins, right? To be honest, now that I know, I can't unsee the resemblance"

Uiharu sniffed a little. Touma offered her a handkerchief.

"Thank you. You know, we were even more similar when we were small"

As she blew her nose, Touma asked

"You were close back then, weren't you?"

"Yes" the girl admitted" Rin-chan's mother, my father's cousin, manifested serious illness when we were younger. That disease didn't kill her, but stripped her of possibility of genuinely spending time with her daughter, as it wrecked her stamina and immunity. I thought that even though her dad was still there, she felt lonely. It must have been awful to find your parent collapsed on the ground one day, and from one moment to the other, lose the time of a person who was there for you almost all the time. So whenever I could, even if it wasn't really convenient, I went to visit uncle and aunt Sukemi. I talked with Rin and we played a lot too. She always wanted to play pretend, and was just the sweetest girl ever, like a nice yet bubbly big sister. Yet, over time, I realized that she had almost no friends. When I tried to ask her about it, she either brushed it off or said that she wasn't as flashy as her other friends. That could be true... Rin was shy, morbidly so, but... I think the problem was her fear of losing someone close. We were small, and I can only speak from the distance of time, but I think she was scared of it even there. I wanted to keep her company, but we got separated when I went to Academy City. And when she arrived here too, we didn't keep contact..."

"Why?"

"She never reached out. I didn't want to impose on her. I checked where she studied over some time, and then, I realized something. There was a pattern..."

"A pattern?"

"Yes, a pattern. In every level of education, in every level of every school she was in, one classmate kept appearing as a constant..."

She leaned over and jabbed Touma with a finger with each word.

"It. Was. You!"

Touma blinked. He suspected that much, but to hear it spoken out like this was...

"Strange, right?" Uiharu frowned" I was surprised too. I didn't even know you back then. And now, when I think about her behaviour, I am conflicted on what to think about it. On the one hand, this sounds like a fairy tale. Like a red thread of fate or something. But on the other..."

For the first time, her voice and look got slightly colder

"If someone that was such a constant in her life, be it by fate or coincidence, did something that would break her heart or spirit... it would make you a main suspect for driving her to be like that."

"Uiharu-san, I... I would never do anything to hurt-"

"I know. I trust you, and you are a great guy, you wouldn't do it intentionally. I just want to make sure you clear things up if you were involved in her life in what may be inferred. She is my family and you are my friend. I don't want any side to suffer, so you must resolve it with her. That's the only demand I have"

"Of course. I... actually want to know what she thought about that too..."

'...because I don't remember that time' a pain-filled, guilty thought came into his mind.

"... Kamijou-senpai, I suspect why she wanted to be close to you. She was often alone and shunned away, whether intentionally or not. Apparently, you suffered a lot and were alone in your younger years, too. And if through it all, your heart was as big and kind as it is now, it's not hard to understand what a girl who thought of herself as left alone and unseen because of her self-proclaimed ordinary status could see in you. Don't worry, you are not guilty until proven innocent, as Shirai often used to treat you when it comes to Misaka-san. I just hope we can all be happy here"

"That's... really nice way to put it" Touma nodded, giving Uiharu warm smile" I will talk with her as soon as her condition stabilizes. Sounds good?"

"Mhm"

"By the way... thanks a lot."

"For what?"

"Oh you know... for not lashing and attacking me as soon as you got the suspicion..."

Uiharu made a disbelieving face

"Who would attack you, a defenseless, recovering patient in a hospital on unbased speculation?"

Kamijou Touma laughed. Oh, he laughed. He laughed so hard that he chocked and ended up coughing for nearly a minute. He almost burst into laughter second time when Uiharu stil maintained that innocently confused face. But he stopped himself and reached out with his hand.

"It's honestly great to have a friend like you"

Uiharu also reached forward, touching his hand with hers in friendly gesture.

"Likewise, Kamijou-senpai"

(AND SOME DAYS LATER...)

"Ah, home sweet home" Touma said triumphantly, as he and Gokusai sisters passed through the doorstep of their apartment.

"You know what?" Rikuri thoughtfully tapped her cheek with a finger" It seems like ages since we last been here, back at our place. Because so much happened in such a short span of time"

"But we are finally here nonetheless" Kaibi nodded, moving their things to the living room, for them to be later taken to the respective rooms" And I hope nothing will stop us from enjoying ourselves..."

"But... don't you still have some problems to deal with?" Rikuri asked" Kanzaki-san is still around, somewhere, and although Rin-san's condition does not permit visitors, she may be able to speak with us soon. It's not like I encourage it, but-"

Touma spun around and grabbed Rikuri's shoulders, causing the older girl to jump.

"Rikuri-san, even I have right to some things in life. Besides, I don't have to go to do those things. If they are awful, they will find me on their own, because this is just how my lack of fortune works. Unless someone is in immediate danger, I am prefering to focus on all of you"

Sultry look entered Rikuri's eyes, as she batted them at Touma.

"Well, when you put it that way, how can I say no?"

"Rikuri, wha-... don't just latch onto me like tha-"

"I want in too!"

Amazora cheered and as Rikuri hugged him, she jumped into the air, smashing into Touma's face and also latching herself onto his head.

"Stop, I cannot see!"

Everyone ended on the floor in less than few seconds.

"You smell so nice" Rikuri purred, smothering her cheek on his face

"Yup, I can stay like this forever" Amazora wasn't far behind.

"I am not~!" Kaibi wheezed, trying to crawl from under the pile" You are heavy, get the hell up!"

Othinus and Index, who appeared in the doorway carrying groceries, looked at the human pile skeptically

"Hey, nun" Othinus put her hand on Index's shoulder. A wild gleam appeared in her eyes as she did it, still in excitation that she was actually capable of pulling it off" Remember what we talked about? Breathe in and out... oh, you are too hungry to even notice?!"

"We will have tonkatsu... I want it so much..."

"Well, then I guess I will test my ability to put my stupid understander in a headlock!"

"Please don't! Being blinded and suffocated at the same time is an overkill!"

Fortunately, Touma was spared more injuries as everyone quickly got up and Index wandered towards the kitchen.

"But, as to what we talked about, don't worry. I am staying in touch with Accelerator and Hamazura and I will move out if anything bad happens"

"I like Hamazura onii-chan and Accelerator onii-chan" Amazora affirmed" you are like three bosses of some gang. I saw it in a crosswords once. Trimuvi... trumpi...trimpu..."

"I think you think about triumvirat, Amazora-chan" Rikuri suggested gently.

"Now why would you think that?" Touma sighed, rubbing his eyes. He needed a good rest" Despite everything that keeps happening around me, I never want any of the trouble. And as a matter of fact, they don't want it either."

"Hamazura is a former gangster though, as you know, so Amazora's assessments is not far off. A formidable one too" Kaibi mused, playing with bracelet around her wrist" He could disguse himself as a mother, child, and a baby carriage as I pursued him"

Was he having hallucination or did he really hear that right? He had to ask later.

"Well, three bosses are better than three stooges" Othinus said half in jest" Although that title is already reserved to your ridiculous school friends. Nevertheless, as a god, I can draw similarity to various famous triads. Like Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades for example"

Touma was vaguely familiar with how those three gods draw lots for their domains, with Zeus gaining the sky, Poseidon the sea, and Hades the underworld.

Analogies aside, he never really thought about it until now. It was obvious that Accelerator held the control of the city, but it was also pretty clear that him, Touma, and Hamazura worked side by side on number of cases, during number of times. They often did it for different reasons, they had different things they wanted to protect, but they still came together to defend the city.

What future held for that alliance? Did they really share the burdens and divided them like so without realizing it... the darkness, light, and thin line of twilight in between them?

"Now that we are all back home, the question is..." Kaibi snapped him back to reality" What are we going to do with you?"

Othinus looked at her without much of an interest.

"Me?"

"I still don't know how did you get back into your regular size from the freak accident you were involved in... and I am not going to just believe that the effects wore off..."

"I can't tell you much more than a method to partially reverse it was found"

"Can't or won't?" Amazora was not having it either, using a voice that she would use while holding someone on a gunpoint, looking a lot more hostile than when Othinus was doll-sized.

Apparently, the presence of another full-sized female in the household was stirring up some emotions.

"W-Well, I am sure pressuring Othinus-san into talking is not going to do any good. A lady can have her secrets" Rikuri tried to be civil.

"Not in this family"

"Oh, that's funny. So the ice cream disappearing from the fridge in the middle of the night was not a secret at all?"

"Nee-san, I...that was just... i-it's not the same caliber!"

"Yeah! And where is big-onee-chan-who-used to be-small-onee-chan gonna sleep?!"

Amazora, per her innate talent, addressed the elephant in the room.

Touma suspected that Othinus would be quick on the retort. He was not wrong.

"With my understander, of course"

'Crap, I knew it was coming'

"Hold on, just because you suddenly got bigger, doesn't mean you can boss yourself like this"

"I think it implies just that. I am just claiming what is obvious"

"Nothing is obvious here, especially about your situation"

"Touma, if I help cooking, will it be done faster? I AM STARVING!"

Kamijou Touma banged his head on the fridge in exasperation.

For the longest of time, he remained oblivious to multitude of affectionate feelings directed towards him. Sometimes, he thought it was a blessing.

'I just learned that they love me, allow me some baby steps here!' he thought' It's one thing to learn about it, another is to manage this situation. I still have to figure out how to do it. Even if Nephthys and Niang-Niang arranged it so everyone get happy ending in the future, I still have to act in a certain way to arrive at that conclusion. Defeating Kamijou No Touma was a must, but it wasn't the only condition. I have to actually learn about those feelings. I want to explore them. I want to be happy with someone that loves me. But situation like this is like death no matter the outcome, damn it. If I narrow the choice down, the other side will destroy me, either physically or mentally. Let's see...'

He swirled around and pointed at the girls.

"Hah hah! I already saw through fate's cruel attempt to get my down. There is no correct solution in making a single choice."

Both Othinus and Kaibi looked at him sharply.

"What are you suggesting?"

"There is an obvious solution here. You have to deal with this. Either everyone or no one. Any other option ends in civil war, so what about it?"

The girls looked at each other and...

(FEW HOURS LATER)

"Of course... they... chose... everyone... great plan, right..."

The bed was straining under the weight of six people and so was Touma.

He would lie if he said that slim body of Othinus next to him didn't evoke any good sentiment. It reminded him of the time the rested together on the backseat during their journey through Denmark. Not particularly relaxing journey, but one that reinforced their closeness and convictions to one another.

Kaibi, gently wrapped around him from the other side, was peaceful and beautiful in her sleep. But the rest...

Rikuri nibbled on his ear as she had habit of doing, making it impossible to fall asleep even if he wasn't crushed. Amazora rolled over him, over and over again, obviously feeling too hot but still refusing to vacate her spot. But the final straw came when Index, who apparently developed idea to come to his bed independently from the others, clenched her teeth on his arm, biting him in her sleep.

"Arg! That's not the matter of being pure or chaste, this is the matter of staying alive. I can barely breath! This Kamijou needs a semblance of restorative sleep to deal with misfortune bound to show up tomorrow. As much as my hormones disagree, I can't feel good, nor sleep, if I am not breathing! OUT!"

And as such, a group of girls was gently expelled from the room.

Touma sighed, as the sounds of the girls returning to their resting places quieted down (with Othinus taking out extra futon and sleeping in the living room) and looked at Sphynx, who managed to sneak in during the commotion. While humans should sleep, the cat was wide awake, following its nocturnal hunting instincts.

"It's just you and me in the night. Two guys of the house"

"Nya"

"It's difficult sometimes. Knowing what to do when you barely learned that something is out there. And I just wonder... can I make everyone happy? Both here and... at this future?"

Sphynx purred, sitting near Touma, who scratched him under the chin.

"I will do my best, but how far can I get with my misfortune? Is 'my best' really the standard for everyone's happiness?"

Future Phase was apparently best that could be for him and his family. He still had lot of time to figure out his way there. And there was no better option that actually live his life.

The cat rubbed against his fingers, looking at him, his eyes glowing slightly in the dark.

"Nyaaaaah"

Touma never really thought about it, but Sphynx was originally a street cat. He had no idea about his origin or story, or whether or not he had any family of his own.

"We put you through a lot more than regular cat would experience. Index just took you in, but I bet you had to brace through a lot, without any option to give your input. Are you actually happy with us?"

"Nya nyaaaah"

"Maybe I should ask Mina, she would probably be able to actually understand you. Good talk, buddy. Or that one girl in the Tokiwadai, I think Mikoto mentioned her once..."

Sphynx stretched and yawned, before jumping off the bed and sneaking out through the slightly opened window.

Suddenly, Touma had a surrealistic thought that Sphynx could have some adventures of his own. What if his encounter with them made him tougher and near-death experiences from balancing on Index's head during all the magical mayhem honed his survival instincts to fullest and now he was roaming the streets at night, defeating other male cats, protecting his territory and securing a harem of cat queens, while also witnessing some of dark secrets hidden within city's night? Othinus did say that when she was coming back to warn Touma about Index being kidnapped, Sphynx scared other cats with his mere presence.

He chuckled, sleep finally coming over him.

A thought of his descendants with bunch of calico kittens was a very endearing vision to fall asleep to.

(IN THE MORNING)

Wherever Sphynx was, he must have returned by morning, because Touma saw a scene that looked straight from wild west, with full-sized Othinus and Sphynx standing at two corners of the room.

Kaibi walked to him, with comb in one hair and nail lacquer in the other. They were both so bewildered that they didn't even notice comb switching owners, as Touma started to gently brush Kaibi's golden hair, as she got to the nail painting.

"Othinus, what is going on?"

"Silence, human. Don't interfere. For now is the time of my vengance" she grinned, as she made a step forward" All of that chasing and humiliation... now that I am back at this size, I have nothing to fear. I will give him a bath he will never forget"

She began to chase the cat. Meanwhile, the rest of the girls also came to the kitchen, eager for breakfast.

Othinus finally managed to catch Sphynx and dragged him to the bathroom.

The hissing and meowing lasted for at least 5 minutes, but then...

A truly un-godly shriek echoed across the apartament and fairy-sized Othinus sprinted from around the corner chasing by the pile of wet and furious ball of feline wrath.

"As shameful as it is for a war god, I miscalculated!"

Touma managed to catch her, while Sphynx hissed and jumped onto Index's lap.

"So, you are small again" Kaibi noted.

"I can't be big all of the time. That's part of the deal"

"My my, I should be adjusted to people around Touma being mysterious, but it just never ceases to amaze me" Rikuri said thoughtfully" Anyway, I tried to perfect new chemical seasoning, who wants to try-"

"No"

"Amazora-chan, that's just cold! Onee-chan's gonna cry"

"I am sure Kaai or Yakumaru would love it though" Touma quickly reassured her" In the meantime, why don't you start setting the dishes up, I will help you in a minute"

He took Othinus to his room to find something small to dress her in.

"Honestly, what is this deal you made?"

Othinus opened her mouth and then her face went blank.

"Tch, I hate that magic. I want to tell you but my mind goes blank whenever I am willing to spill the details to you"

"What magic?"

"She used egyptian name magic for making that geas. It is a really strong stuff, I always felt it was rather... invasive."

"When did I hear this before... oh, after the battle with Kyozetsu, Nephthys used it to alert her when I was in danger, or something like that. So, what you are saying is that you can't tell me what rules of your deal are?"

"Human, do you even know what a geas is?"

"Isn't it an anim-"

"Stop, I should have known... a geas is a magical pact. It originates from Irish folclore, but any magic can be used to form it. What all geas contracts have in common is that that they have conditions of fulfillment and consequences for their breaching. Those consequences can be different for various parties, but both the creator and the party of interest have some consequences"

"And that's a good thing, right?"

"Yes, although the contract maker still has advantage over wording the contract. The geas-making is art in itself. For there can be double meaning, multiple layers of conditions, and other intricacies weaved into the spell. Words are power too, and the language we speak often changes reality in a way that may be unfathomable for you humans."

"So, what I am getting is that Nephthys formed this geas with you, but you can't disclose what were your respective conditions or what she wanted?"

"Not until time comes" Othinus said, sounding almost... embarrassed.

"But why are you growing and shrinking without a warning?"

"I am sure that was her idea of a hilarious joke"

"That's not right. I will talk to her and Niang-Niang about making something that will warn us in advance about your shift in size."

"That would be preferable. It would be highly inconvenient if something like this occurred mid-battle"

"Why are you so pesimistic? You and Kaibi are so much alike in thinking that there is danger in my closet or just around the corner. There is nothing-"

He met eyes of Lessar as he opened the doors to the closet.

The girl yawned and smiled, her eyes glittering like small sapphires. She was dressed in panties and wide black cloth on the level of her chest with golden letters formed the word 'CONGRATULATIONS'

"Happy recovery from deadly battle... yay?"

(LATER...)

"Owowowow! Not both ears! I can handle one, but two are too much!"

"I am sorry, again, for our idiot" Bayloupe said, twisting Lessar's ears with her hands

The breakfast was postponed a little bit, much to Index's disdain, enough for New Light to arrive. Touma figured that since Lessar was already here, they could invite the rest for eating together.

"Vanilla! I swear my intent was absolutely vanilla clean!"

"In that get up?"

"My skin was more covered than usual, Lover Boy, at least 10% more"

"But why in the closet?!"

"It was instinctual, old habits die hard. I wanted to surprise you"

"Well, I will give you the benefit of doubt here since you didn't get to me at night" Touma sighed, gesturing to other New Light members" Is the food good for you?"

"It's absolutely delicious" Lancis smiled sweetly at him" Thank you for remembering that we prefer fork and a knife to chopsticks"

"Sure, no problem. So what you've been up to?"

"Still renovating that dorm. We are no masters, but it's slowly coming together" said Bayloupe.

Touma could have been mistaken but he could have sworn she put an emphasis on the word 'slowly'.

"And since the princess is satisfied with our service and your chairman didn't kick us out yet..." said Floris, dipping her food in sauce" We took the liberty to sightsee and spend time in this city. It's so strange and different compared to what we are used to in the UK"

She reached for another piece, but it suddenly disappeared, causing the blond to frown and become confused.

Index licked her lips and innocently continued to look on the plates displayed on the table.

"I am pretty sure Academy City is rather different compared to the world as a whole" Touma corrected her.

"Still, the experience is rather unique. We can't say we dislike it, if anything, the differences are rather enriching" Bayloupe gently blowed on her food, before suddenly handing it over to Touma on the fork.

"Would you mind checking it for me? I don't want it to be too spicy. Say 'aaaah'"

"Wait, wha-"

Bayloupe gently but without any unnecessary delay stuffed his mouth with food.

Right in front of them, Kaibi's eyes flickered dangerously and not in a metaphorical sense. Touma got to realize multiple times just how one should never underestimate Measure Heart. As an ability it could achieve such complex effects that it was no wonder Kaibi almost always managed to turn ill fortune away from her family.

Right now, her face suggested that she was deliberating whether she should decrease Bayloupe's emotional distance to bare minimum and tell her to parade in the most embarrassed costume one could imagine, throughout the city.

"How is it?"

"It's... not all that spicy"

"I see. I actually checked it before" Bayloupe meticulously cleaned her rosy lips with a napkin" I just wanted a second opinion."

CRACK!

Touma could practically hear Kaibi's mind switching from manipulating into humiliation into manipulating to sudden death. Nearby, Rikuri was mixing something in a teacup that looked like anything but the tea, and from her grim face he deduced that ingesting it would not end up good either. As for Amazora, she gripped the edge of the table with such a force that Touma wasn't sure if the cracking sound he heard moment later didn't come from her.

Fortunately, bless her sweet self, Lancis saved the day, changing the focus of the conversation.

"The point is, we are very grateful that you allowed us to stay in your dorm" she said, her elegantly painted nails gently tapping on the table as she did." This is why we wanted to spend some time with you"

"T-That's great, but..." Touma coughed, clearing his throat" I already promised that me and the girls will spend a family time together"

He pointed at himself, Gokusai sisters, and Index. He wanted to include Othinus, but she was still in his room, drying herself.

The pressure from the other side of the table dispersed instantly, making it easier for the boy to breath, replaced with small sight of triumph from Kaibi, endearment from Rikuri, and smugness from Amazora.

"Oh well, we can't have it all exactly when we wanted" Bayloupe shrugged, before her lips formed a devious smirk" Still, you should join us in the afternoon. I think you will love it. Floris insisted you should be there, she is the one with the initiative"

"Bwah-" Floris' face went red as she stammered" D-Don't imagine anything over your head, Touma Kamijou. It's j-j-just the british way to repay debts"

"Our resident britsundere spoke up and is all fired up, as you see" Lessar laughed" So make sure you come. We will send you the details later"

"L-L-Lessar, don't make up words up! I will seriously punch you"

As Floris angrily put her hand with fork down, she skewered part of omurice... which was at the same time grabbed by another pair of utensils.

"Ah-hah! I knew you were stealing my food, you voracious thief!"

"Just a bit more..."

"Index, we still have a some left, there is no need to fight over it..."

But Touma was already too late, as the fierce battle over the omurice ensued.

"That's no use" Lancis said" Our Floris is of the humble beginnings and will not tolerate anyone taking things from her like that. You can say it is the matter of her pride."

Afterwards, New Light took off, Bayloupe telling Touma to look out from notification from them regarding the surprise they planned. As they departed, only Lessar lingered behind.

"Lessar-san, are you... sulking, by any chance?"

The brunette crossed her arms and looked him directly in the eyes.

"You are not taking me seriously, Lover Boy"

"What do you mean?"

"You totally thought I am going to try get my hands on you there, didn't you?"

"Well... that was just an inkling of a thought..."

Touma couldn't deny it though. Lessar pouted at him.

"You forgot our heart-to-heart? I like you. I really, really do. I also want to sleep with you, and I am not talking just about sharing the bed"

"I think I got that message"

"But it's not only about recruiting you anymore. It's because I always wanted to do it with a guy I like this way. However... even if that doesn't change, I remember our agreement to take things slow. I am not the smartest girl ever, but even I won't wreck trust by thinking only with my hormones. You became important to New Light not only as an asset with Imagine Breaker, but as your own self too."

"Are you sure you are Lessar?"

"People can change and try to overcome their fears, Lover Boy. I just want a bit of your faith that I can do it for you. Besides, I had my own little surprise. Buuuut... as punishment, this will have to wait for later"

She skipped away, waving her hand.

Touma smiled lightly

"Would you look at that..."

(ONE HOUR LATER)

Like they planned, they soon did.

Everyone dressed in their favourite clothes, looking elegant but casual enough to partake in the activites they planned.

Additionally, each girl changed something from her usual style. Touma lived with the sisters long enough to know that they were very fashionable, even Amazora, and liked to celebrate special occasions with those small modifications, not enough to completely alter their usual style, but enough to make them stand out from their daily routines.

Amazora straightened her hair a little and made a single ponytail with a little loop, which showcased just how eccentric her ideas could be at times.

Kaibi decided to wear blue this time, which Touma admitted was a deviation from her normal pink, but not unwelcome one, as it created interesting contrasts between her eyes, hair, and dress.

Rikuri put on a large sun hat, which reminded Touma of the one his mother Shiina sometimes wore. It really suited her, amplifying the aura of aristocratic elegance she already possessed almost effortlessly.

With that in mind, it was almost strange to see that Othinus and Index were the same as always. Well, almost the same since Amazora insisted for Index to change due to activity she planned.

"Let's head out!"

They had few hours of fun planned, as a break from all the craziness happening that was happening in recent times all around them.

Since they were relatively fresh and well rested, they decided to do Amazora's idea first. Which was electronic paintball.

In contrast to regular paintball, and to the electronic versions that were merely limited to few points on the body, this version actually displayed holographic simulations of blood in place that would normally be hurt, all over a person, so it was adding a degree of thrill and realism.

"BWAH! My nose!"

"Nun, duck to the left! Charge forward! Time for the relentless frontal assault at their right flank!"

"NYAHAHAHAHA! Die, die, die, everyone can die! AHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Amazora, stop yelling every time you charge, I said that to you during our jobs and I am saying it now"

"Gah! I've been... shooooooot~ Oaaah! And again~"

After few rounds of more or less equal teams of Index, Othinus, and Amazora versus Touma, Kaibi and Rikuri, Touma was close to peeing himself from laughter. He couldn't decide which part of the experience was the funniest... or rather, who was.

You could always count on Index to misinterpret something in regards to technology. When she received her first 'injury' she screamed and freaked out so much that she almost ran face first into the wall. Needless to say, actually using the weapon wasn't going better either.

Her teammates also provided some entertainment. It was due to the fact that Othinus seemed to awaken some ancient god of war memories and was shouted commands at Index from her shoulder as if the nun was a solider marching at the enemy, while Amazora, who was the best shooter out of everyone present, simply loved charging crazily at the enemy's base and, while scoring major hits, her wicked cackling soon turned into high pitched shriek of fright when she ran back chased by Kaibi

The middle sister, good in marksmanship skills herself, introduced another degree of absurd realism, by pointing out all of the flaws in the stance and how her enemies would be dead in the real battle.

As for Rikuri, she was good as a lookout for enemies, but failed terribly at actually hitting anything, additionally making such overdramatic sounds at being hit herself that Touma could barely keep a straight face.

He could tell that he got to relax and enjoy himself a lot, and he could tell by the looks of the others that it wasn't just him. Even Index got a laugh out of the experience.

Next, Kaibi took them shopping. Touma didn't think that his wardrobe needed an update, but Kaibi wasn't having it. Soon, all of them had new outfits, which often combined both practical and aesthetic qualities needed in their occasionally hectic life. As much as Touma wasn't that shopping-savvy when it came to clothing, he liked Kaibi's excitement and the way she looked at him with a smile when he tried clothes she chose for him. She paid for everyone and it was one of her forms of showing love and generosity to her family. Plus, the kiss on the cheek she sneaked in before the other's back as the thank you upon exiting the mall definitely helped too.

Rikuri took them to art exhibition combined with the painting for the guests. After going through exhibition (which contained some of Rikuri's own paintings she made in her free time) the group went to private art room to paint. Rikuri decided to paint all of them, Amazora went for something that her older sisters rather politely called abstract art of their family, while Rikuri made a very detailed sketch of Touma in his Living God form, to his embarrassment. Kaibi drafted landscape of Academy City. Index was surprisingly profficient in sketching table full of food, although part of that secret could be explained by the fact that he watched Rikuri and copied the way she made strokes with a painting brush.

Even Othinus didn't want to be left behind, and she figured out a rather ingenious form of painting. Covering part of her body with paint, she ran across the canvas, which created criss-crossing streams of colour and spiralling tracks that seemed similar to one Jackson Pollock, at least according to Rikuri.

But the cherry on top came to the end.

"Human, grab me, I think I will-"

POP!

Suddenly Othinus was back to her full-sized form, in which (according to her earlier assertion) she would remain at least till the end of the day. She temporarily lost her balance and fell back onto the canvas. The painting strained, but did not break through, before Touma pulled her back up.

As she grew up, the quantity of paint on her lower half didn't change, so instead of full legs, now she looked like she had coloured underpants. But still, in the middle of the many concentric spheres, encircling it like multicolour halos of light, there were clearly two spherical, conjoined shapes in the middle.

"Art can be interpreted in a multitude of ways. This can be a representation of many things..." Rikuri tried the dyplomatic approach

"Butt. That's totally her butt"

And there was a snickering Amazora, who completely negated any such attempt.

"Othinus-san, don't be discouraged" Kaibi tried her attempt of being supportive" You have a very graceful underside. It doesn't diminish your art's quality in the slightest"

"This is not what I am concerned about! Burn it! Obliterate this mistake!"

"Heavens no!" Rikuri was appalled" The boldness! The avant garde-approach! The transgression of norms! Given a bit time, this art will be very expensive. We simply must take it"

Rikuri and Amazora secured the art before Othinus could shred it to pieces.

"You know, with all of the crazy stuff happening with the future, my children, and all of that" Touma joked moments later, as he waited for Othinus outside of the toilet while she washed away the paint" Maybe this painting really will sell for a great price and helps establish the environment in which that many children could thrive and be happy"

Othinus poked her head out with a skeptic look on the face.

"Are you seriously suggesting that you build a mansion or something similar from the cash this art generates in the future?"

"I am just saying this is a possibility"

"Good grief... I just got a way to temporarily reverse the fairy spell... and it's one undignifying thing after the other..."

"Nephthys said that gods should make miracles, not wait for them..."

"You know... calling my butt a miracle could be a blasphemy if you weren't my Understander..." Othinus said, although her lips curled up in amusement." This is so absurd"

"My whole life is whole bunch of bad luck and absurdity. That's nothing new"

(ONE HOUR LATER)

Touma had a pretty good idea what Index wanted to do and he wasn't mistaken. A self-serving, multi-cuisine bar was just what he envisioned Index going for.

They combined it with Touma's own idea of having a calm picnic.

It worked out better than expected.

But as they laid back and relaxed, Touma suddenly realized that he could see only half of the sky.

He adjusted his gaze only to notice a familiar woman with cat ears and black dress.

"Mina Mathers?"

"Hello, Kamijou Touma" the cat witch lowered her head slightly"I just arrived. Pardon me for interrupting, but I have a request."

"An acquaintance of yours?" Kaibi asked.

"You can say that. It's nice to see you are doing well, Mina. You said you needed something from me? Please tell me it's not a world ending apocalypse and I need to take part in some battle"

"No, nothing like that. The chairman asked me for assistance in certain case that may not be suitable for little Lilith"

"Accelerator did? Does he need help?"

"Hmm, even after asserting that you want to not get involved in apocalyptic events, you still want to help should the need arise. Don't preoccupy yourself. Accelerator knows my connection to Crowley and this matter is related to dealings of the past, that's why he wants my presence. I am asking if you or your friends could watch Lilith for a little while. I will follow your intuition on who can take care of her the best"

"Right..."

"Well, I am off then. It's just till the end of the day"

"Mina-san, wait..."

But she was already quite far away, waving at him while hurrying elsewhere.

"Fukou da... don't just go off like that!"

"So, who is that precious baby?" Rikuri asked.

"Her name is Lilith. She's Aleister's"

"Wait... Aleister's? As Aleister Crowley's? The former chairman?"

Kaibi's eyes widened as she looked at the small girl.

'Aleister Crowley had a child? If Kakine... former Kakine, I guess... knew this... he would hunt this baby down to use for a leverage, for sure. Sometimes I am really, really glad for leaving this period of my life behind me...'

"So what are we going to do about that?"

"Girls, can you go to shop for some diapers and food suitable for her? Me, Index, and Othinus will take her home. To be honest, I shouldn't accept her now. I already made promises to be in a couple of places today and I doubt nothing bad will happen to her with me around"

"Alright, but... will you be alright on your own?"

"Sure, you will be a great help if you go buy the supplies just in case"

"All right, it shouldn't take long"

And so they split, each group hurrying in opposite direction.

But Touma did not manage to walk long.

As he hurried across the busy street, he heard a voice... no, couple of voices, actually... shouting his name. And as both he, Index, and Othinus turned around, they came face to face with a familar group.

(MEANWHILE, FEW STREETS AWAY)

Shirai Kuroko loathed paperwork. She could shamelessly admit that she pushed a lot of it onto Uiharu. But right now Uiharu was on the leave due to caring for family member and it was up to Kuroko to take up the slack.

However... as much as she complained about it, internally she was almost glad for the distraction. Anything was better than looking upon the mess that her heart turned into recently.

Almost unconsciously, her legs carried her to the caffe called 'Aztec Orchid' few streets away from her branch. It was still close to work, but far enough to accidentally bump into someone from there.

Kuroko was familiar with the place through Saten, whose acquaintance apparently worked there. That in itself wasn't quite amazing, as Saten had ridiculous social network, which formed solely through her good intent and friendliness. But this everything about this girl screamed exotic.

Apparently, the waitress known as Xochitl was the same person Saten met during their time in Liberal Arts City. She had a simple apron, which complimented her chocolate skin and dark hair. Her brown eyes calmly scanned through Kuroko as she entered.

"Miss Shirai. Back again? It's good to see you in good health. The usual?"

"Yes, please"

Her usual was a coffee. Kuroko didn't drink it very often but the one in Aztec Orchid had mixture of spices added to the milk that absolutely to die for.

Xochitl walked away gracefully and started to prepare the beverage.

Kuroko didn't know what to think of her at times. The girl was always calm but her gaze had something from a scanner used by high-tech facilities.

She tried to question her few times, but somehow Xochitl always evaded her. Whenever Kuroko thought she had her, she just vanished, and the street was empty besides few unrelated people.

Well, the papers of her employment and the restaurant itself checked out, as testified by the manager, the fair skinned girl in a tracksuit with two brown braids.

After some time, Kuroko gave up on her investigative pursuit, because her head hurt too much. She could have sworn the 'manager' smelled in the same way as Xochitl did on some days and on some she did not. Even if she wanted to assume that by some unexplained phenomenon Xochitl was impersonating the manager, she saw them both in the same place so it couldn't be it.

"Tochtli, can you resupply the coffee beans?"

"Yup, got'cha!"

Kuroko politely nodded to the only other worker, the younger girl named Tochtli (or maybe it was a nickname, Kuroko wondered), who, in contrast to stoic Xochitl, was frequently grinning and talking during work.

Naturally, Kuroko couldn't know that the cafe was a cover, promised to Etzali by Accelerator after his old cabal fell apart and the girls had nowhere to go. Some time after Handcuffs, Accelerator allowed them to establish it, on the condition that they got chipped and reported the assortiment of disguises they possessed. Other than that, they were left alone. The manager was Xochitl's old persona that Saten Ruiko met during the Daihaseisai. Both she and Tochtli used it to make it more convincing.

Finally, the Judgement member sat down by the table near the other person who often shared a drink with her.

Etzali lifted his cup in greeting.

"Shirai-san? Another hard day?"

"Indeed" she sat down, looking at him" You are feeling nostalgic again?"

"I guess. It's nothing special, I just thought about her"

"I can only sympathize."

Apparently, the boy known as Etzali fell hard for a girl in Tokiwadai who had her sights on another girl. He and Kuroko weren't close enough to share the identities, although Kuroko had to admit that her interests weren't hard to deduce if one spend enough time around her.

Still, in recent times, she felt pity and sympathy for the foreign-looking boy. She also confessed having love problems with her onee-sama, although she did not disclose that her feelings were terribly mixed up when it came to Kamijou Touma. A guy who stole her onee-sama's attention in the first place and who should be viewed as the enemy of her advances, but at the same time, aided and saved her numerous times, not deserving horrible treatment she put him through.

At least before she knew what to do. Now, she wanted to drop underground upon remembering throwing an apple into his face just because she couldn't keep a straight face.

And because she was such a mess, she developed unexpectedly good bond with a boy named Etzali. Even though she didn't know him all that well, she thought that he certainly did not deserve being miserable and by himself.

They reminisced and relieved themselves by offhandedly cursing the boys who took their chosen one away from them (without realizing that said boys were actually one and the same person), and tried to comfort one another during Kuroko's occasional visits in the Aztec Orchid.

Even if Misaka Mikoto was the object of affection of Etzali, and the thought appeared within Kuroko's mind at least once, she honestly didn't feel animosity towards the guy. The only guy she ever saw displaying almost disturbing affection for Mikoto was that annoying Unabara Mitsuki, and Etzali didn't look or act anything like that guy.

"You are drinking chocolate again?"

"Not chocolate, xocolatl. It's totally different. It's a cocoa beverage much closer to original recipe. The drink of the warriors"

"You don't look particularly warrior-like right now"

"You are always tough love, huh? You should just have a honest confrontation about your feelings"

"You too. You keep going in circles, don't you? You shouldn't give up the fight. What if that girl likes you?"

"She doesn't. And she has someone who can do it better"

"Well, then you should move on. It's not the end of the world"

Etzali raised an eyebrow.

"Moving on... and how is that working out for you?"

"I-I... shut up, it recently got more complicated"

It wasn't a joke. Kuroko wasn't interested in boys since she met Mikoto, so why was it now that the line between her feelings towards Mikoto and Touma started to blur?

It was so confusing.

"Besides, even if I were to move on, which I actually did... supposedly..."Etzali went on" it's not like anyone would just pop out and said they love me"

SLAM!

Xochitl put next cup of xocolatl in front of Etzali so hard that the contents almost spilled on the boy's shirt.

"Hey! What gives?" he shouted, startled.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing you should bother noticing" the girl pursed her lips, put Kuroko's coffee much more gently, and promptly walked away, muttering something under her breath, that after a moment Kuroko put together as 'atlikuaitl',

'Why are the boys dense sometimes? No, most of the time... she obviously likes him a lot, even if she acts coldly'

According to talkative Tochtli, Xochitl followed Etzali through half of the world because she was worried about him. Yet the boy remained oblivious or interpreted it differently. Kuroko wondered if she should help the pair. Also...

Am I so stubborn and stuck as well? Is there some solution laying in front of me and yet I can't grasp it because I am so used to the way I used to be?'

But Kamijou Touma changed her, even if not the extent as Misaka Mikoto seemed to be changed. And she changed his attitude regarding him too.

As she said goodbye to Etzali and the girls after her drink, she was so deep in thought that she didn't realize that she walked straight into the object of her musings.

"Ow! What the... Kuroko?"

"Onee-sama! And Saten too! I am sorry for that, I was a bit preoccupied... nothing to worry about though. What are you doing here?"

"We were walking to arcade to hang out. You seemed busy and Uiharu... she still at the hospital. We may go for her later on and-"

Someone ran past them with all of their speed, dragging a blur of pink and gold and followed by a silver haired woman in a wimple and few others she didn't really recognize. Bascially, an ample group of women chasing a single boy.

Mikoto's eyes widend.

"Change of plans. If that was who I think it was, something must be on if he is running with that kind of speed"

(HALF AN HOUR EARLIER)

Touma was greeted by a hug smelling like ointments, forest air, and honey-like sweetness. He barely got Lilith out of the way.

Witch Goddess Aradia regained her composure after a moment, and backed away, clearing her throat.

"H-Hello, it's nice to see you again..."

"Aradia, we saw each other just couple days ago. But it's awesome to see you too"

"Oh, you should have seen how happy she was. She is soooo head over heels..." said a voice behind them.

"Bologna..."

"Because, you know, ever since that time you learned about the fact that we do Divine Cosplays and there are more candidates for spot of Aradia, she was simply guuuushing over the fact that she is THE Aradia you chose"

"I-I-I swear I will stockpile Triple Reload for a decade and land a clear hit on you if you don't shut up!"

Stuttering slightly, slightly flushed Aradia yelled at Bologna Succubus, who waved at Touma, Index, and Othinus.

"Not that I am not happy too. Come join us"

"And what is happening here?"

"Isn't it obvious? Mama questions your observation skills. We are having tea-time"

Group of Transcendents was sitting by the road table, with teacups and cakes on display.

The sight was rather unusual and it was may be why Touma completely missed it at first.

"Well, since we are here... Mut, show yourself, please"

Someone fell from the branches of nearby tree.

"Ow, ow, ow..." Mut Thebes muttered, massaging her butt.

Touma offered her hand with raised eyebrow.

"Does stalking me really doesn't get boring?"

"No way! You have no idea what it looks like from the outside. It's super stimulating."

"Well, as long as we are both are happy"

Good Old Mary elegantly tipped her hat in greeting. Bologna's wings twitched as he beamed at him. And Aradia was right beside him, still trying to get the redness from her face.

But they weren't alone.

"Index, hold Lilith for a moment" Touma said, sighing.

"O-Okay..."

Sweet floral aroma filled the air. Sun seemed to shine brighter, and everything in the world seemed to held a breath in the presence of the blond, ghastly pale girl dressed in bizarre dress resembling a mechanical suit, that rose from her seat with a devious smile.

"Oh, you are still alive? Well, Kamijou Touma, we meet againhaaabgh?!"

The right fist that struck her lovely face sent ripples of shockwave across her skin and made it comically bend in an absolutely undignified fashion, then launching her into the air, spinning like bamboo copter, before she fell to the ground.

The Transcendent known as Blodeuwedd angrily shot up, clenching her fists.

"How dare you strike my beautiful face!"

"I warned that I will punch if you try to use this Courting thing on me. It has no effect, so give up."

Bologna Succubus burst into loud, uncontrolled laughter, clutching her sides.

"This is the best thing I've seen whole day" she chuckled, clutching her sides and pointing at the fallen blond" This is the proper greeting for you, flowerbrain"

"You piss me off so much!" Blodeuwedd The Boquet tried to look charming even then, back her face kept twitching in anger" I will erase that stupid grin of your face! I will make every single entity of this world adore me and then use them to crush you"

"Do we really have to do this over something so trivial? Now that's long over the time of Kotatsu Syndrome and over craziness from that time?"

"Trivial? You annoying me is nothing trivial!"

It wasn't like Chimera who wanted to woo him for herself. This celtic Transcendent hated his defiance and just wanted to see him pay for it.

"You started it. Why does it matter if I love you or not? Not everyone has to like you. And I would have liked you a lot more if you didn't try luring every single thing to you like an overrated flytrap, you disney princess on steroids! Did you ever hear about the phrase 'mutual consent'?"

"Disney princess on steroids... I am dying..." wheezed Bologna, clearly enjoying the annoyance upon her nemesis.

As the sparks flied between them, Good Old Mary clapped her hands.

"Now, now, Mama won't have such quarrels disturbing the tea. Let's set this aside for now, shall we?"

"As you see, we have eye on our dear companions from the cabal ever since that time. It's best to travel with them than to have them roam free, as aggravating as this is" Aradia explained.

Touma looked over to another Transcendent over the table.

"You are Vidhatri, if I remember what I heard correctly."

The model-like girl with brown skin and dark hair wearing a red backpack looked at him haughtily, before raising up and positioned her face directly in front of his

"Kamijou Touma..."

"As I said, we can try to leave our past animosities beside us. I get you wanted to preserve your power, but there is no reason to keep on it"

"Perhaps..." the indian-based Transcendent muttered. Her perfect eyebrows knitted together as she suddenly sniffed him a few times, her eyes closing.

Index and Othinus stiffed, as Touma looked left and right in confusion.

"W-What... this Kamijou certainly didn't expect this development"

Vidhatri cringed, as she looked at Touma again

"You stink of fate manipulation on you. Days ago, I felt my threads snapping and reconnecting again forcefully, as if something was bending the entire world's destiny. I have no proof, but whether it concerned Alice or not, you always seem to be at the forefront of disaster. What a headache."

"Thanks, I will add 'Forefront of Disaster' next to 'God of Pestilence', I am sure it will by great in my future CV."

"And speaking of headaches..." Vidhatri looked at Touma's right hand and smacked her lips in disdain, lifting her chin to get the most high-and-mighty look she could make" mere sight of that hand makes me nauseous. Your red thread of fate snapped the moment you entered this world and you keep defying my area of magic. You are bothersome to me"

"I kind of get the memo. Also, I actually died during those events? That wasn't enough drama for everyone?"

"Don't worry" Bologna said cheerfully" Vidhatri is a type who would step on a person and twist her foot to make sure she got the message across even if she didn't have truly hostile intent. The more she does it, the more she believes you are interesting in some way"

"Hmph, preposterous" Vidhatri said, tossing her hair aside, crossing her arms and sitting down.

In the meantime, Lilith decided to cry out, prompting everyone's attention to her.

"Oh, there is a baby here" Mut Thebes muttered, as if noticing only now" Whose is..."

She looked at Lilith's silver hair, and her brown face became blank.

Slowly she moved her eyes to Aradia, than back at Lilith, and back at Aradia again.

"Oi... you always seem so meek when it comes to things like that... but I guess things accelerated... it doesn't seem fair...but congratulations"

The Transcendent of Punishment's voice sounded hollow.

Aradia blinked few times, looking at Lilith, and then her face, which just returned to normal hue, became red again.

"A-A-ARE YOU INSANE?! OF COURSE IT I-I-ISN'T MINE!"

"It's Aleister's" Touma interjected. He finished writing something on his phone" We were on her way to my dorm where the girls will bring the necessary food and supplies"

"Aren't you precious?" Bologna smiled, wiggling her tail over Lilith who tried to catch it.

"She is rather adorable" admitted Mut Thebes.

Aradia scanned Othinus' full sized form with her eyes.

"I was meaning to ask, what happened to you?"

"Long story. To make it abridged, I made a deal that partially reversed fairy spell put on me"

"I see... oh, before I forget" Aradia looked at Touma" Anna is saying she is coming here to see you"

"Wow, that is a big news. I will have to introduce her to the girls. And make some party, cause we didn't see each other in a while and-"

"KYAH!"

Bologna Succubus squeaked softly when Lilith, visibly upset at the inability to catch the demonesses tail, decided to exact revenge by grabbing and pinching her breast.

"Yeah, definitely a Crowley kin" Othinus remarked sarcastically.

"Hand her over to me" Good, Old Mary instructed" Mama is not mama for nothing"

"Quite vibrant, this child" Vidathri said, massaging her temple.

"And people say I was crazy when I conspired to kill my beloved" added Blodeuwedd.

"What do you mean? I am sure motherhood is great. I would love to be one"

"I would fear for the child's sanity"

"Oh come on, there is clearly-"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait..."Touma waved his hands and looked at Bologna, his face suddenly changing" What did you just say?"

The wings of the succubus twitched as she tilted her head, looking at him.

"That... I am sure motherhood is great?"

"Yeah... but... why do you wonder?" Touma spoke slowly, his throat going dry" After all... you have a daughter"

"What?"

"A daughter. Don't you remember the entire thing with me and Misaki? Her name is Shokuhou Misaki"

"Like the level 5 esper of this city?"

"The very same. Wait... don't tell me you don't know that"

"You confuse me... I never had a child in my entire life"

Touma looked at her for a while.

Then suddenly stood up.

"Index, Othinus... I need to speak with Niang-Niang. And I need both Misaki and Bologna with me."

"What about Lilith?"

"Even before all of that, I knew that I had to phone someone to take over Lilith for a moment. We will solve this issue and take her back, it shouldn't take long"

As if on cue, there was a sound of running and then, Maidono, Hasako, and Awaki appeared from behind the corner.

"We came as quickly as we could" Maidono, said supporting Hasako, who was panting heavily. Despite her overwhelming abilities, she had the least amount of stamina out of the three.

"Jime? I didn't call for you. Were you training with them again?"

"On the money. A-And don't call me Jime"

"He's giving people nicknames. Why can't I have a cool nickname from him?" Mut Thebes muttered quietly behind them.

Touma took Lilith and presented her to the girls. Hasako's eyes filled with life, her earlier fatigue seemingly forgotten

"W-Who is that precious baby?!"

"This is Lilith. I am sorry to do this, but I have to explain something, and she might need to be fed and rested in the meantime. Can I leave her with you? Does anyone here have experience watching children?"

Musujime raised her hand. Touma backed Lilith away a little bit

"Let me rephrase that. Does anyone here have experience watching over children?"

"H-How rude! I have experience with my younger relatives. I am not into infants, what kind of sick person do you take me for? And it's not even a boy!"

"Something tells me you are putting your concern in the wrong places..."

"Don't worry, you can count on us" Maidono saluted" I am always ready to prove my usefulness to you"

"And I wouldn't mind caring for her in the slightest. Lilith-chan, was it? Whose baby is it?"

"It's Aleister's..."

Something similar to shivering permeated through Hasako's body.

But...

"Oh, then let's make sure you grow into respectable human being. With a father like that, you would need that..."

'Heh, Aleister is really trying his best, so this might be a bit harsh, but then again, it's not unwarranted...'

"Take her to our dorm. You should have the keys, right? We should not be long. Amazora, Kaibi, and Rikuri should be waiting there by now. Oh, and Hasako?"

"Yes?"

"I saw your hesitation. To care for someone related to one that you trusted... and one that hurt you"

"T-That was..."

"But you passed through it and looked at Lilith as her own being. Like I thought, you would be an excellent mother one day"

Hasako stared at him blankly, processing what he just said

"H-Huh?! M-Me... b-b-but if you thought about it, that means you considered."

POMF!

Knee deep grass with flowers sprouted from the pavement as the first esper turned around , putting hands on her cheeks, her kaleidoscopic eyes spinning. She looked like she was one step away from fainting due to embarrassment.

Touma then seized Bologna Succcubus' hand.

"Let's go"

"G-Go? Where?"

"To get your daughter"

"Huh?"

"W-Wait, don't go without me" Aradia said, running off with them.

"I-It's my passion to follow you, so don't leave me behind"

"Touma, wait!"

Soon, everyone was on the run. Except Maidono, Hasako, Awaki, who stayed behind with Lilith, as well as Good Old Mary and Blodeuwedd, still sitting by the table.

"Aren't you going with them?" Blodeuwedd asked" I have no intention galloping behind this idiot like a stupid mule, but I thought you were included in group with a sympathy for him"

"Mama didn't finish her tea yet" Good, Old Mary explained" Whatever is the reason, I will rejoin them if I will be truly needed. No need to rush."

Meanwhile, Maidono took Lilith into her arms. Little Crowley wriggled restlessly, so Maidono distracted her by moving leaves with her ability.

Musujime Awaki watched the girl follow the circling leaves with her eyes.

She might not be as close to Touma, but she owed him quite a bit and enjoyed his company. She was eager to demonstrate that she could be relied on when he needed her.

'They will never let me live down with the shotacon jokes, huh? Fine, I will show them that I am much more than that and that my help doesn't amount to shit'

Her nose twitched and she cringed, covering it with her hand. Hasako and Maidono followed suit.

Lilith definitely needed changing.

Meanwhile, Touma's group went passed Misaka Mikoto and her friends.

Few minutes later, Othinus asked.

"Human?"

Huh?"

"Is there a particular reason for you to leave her behind?"

"It's better for the girls to take care of her. She might need changing or food or sleep, and I have to deal with this now."

"No, you don't have to, really. You could have waited. Are you... afraid?"

"Afraid? Of what?"

Othinus lowered her gaze a little.

"Of your ability to create future of happiness. Lilith reminded you that one day, you may actually be looking for others. And you pushed those feelings away..."

"Othinus, it's not that simple..."

"Are you afraid of happiness? Are you afraid that someone like you may not be enough? That by the cost of your happiness, you will actually risk the loss of lives you may create?"

Touma was silent.

"Oh human..." Othinus said, softer than usual" You need not worry about this. If you don't want to talk about it now, that's fine. But we will have this conversation. I will not allow my understander to be internally plagued like that when I can do something about it"

(15 MINUTES LATER)

Shokuhou Misaki could not be more surprised.

One moment, she was enjoying tea just in front of School Garden. In the next, she was basically dragged from her chair by none other than her prince.

Normally, she would be elated. Being carried by the hand by him, most amazing and heroic boy in her whole world, felt like a dream...

Except there were multiple other girls and women running around like very peculiarly dressed group at the marathon, and the dream completely shattered.

Also, she got instantly tired.

But apparently, they only needed to get out of sight.

When she regained her breath, Touma asked her

"Misaki, I am sorry to snatch you in such a hurry, but this is important. I discovered something that I think I have to fix"

Misaki realized that standing before her was a peculiar woman with wings, horns, tail, and blond hair that resembled her own. The others gathered around, inspecting them with curiosity.

"Misaki..." Touma asked" Do you recognize this woman?"

"I...do. She is the one who was with you when that old man... CRC, was it... tried to attack the hospital. Quite a copycat ability, I remember that for sure..."

"But nothing else?"

"No... not really. Why? Should I?"

Misaki's mind was working at full throtle.

She was most powerful mental esper on the planet. Surely she would notice if someone tampered with her memory, would she?

"And you, Bologna?" Touma looked at the succubus" Don't you have any memory other than the time when we protected Anna?"

Bologna slowly shook her head.

Touma sighed and shouted

"Niang-Niang, can you please explain and fix this?"

"But I did. What did you expect?"

The taoistic deity was suddenly there, sitting on the nearby container with a small smirk on her face.

(MEANWHILE)

Three girls were looking at Lilith's diaper.

"She looks the age of being potty trained."

"Touma mentioned that she is a pretty special baby. Maybe her growth is not exactly normal"

"So, mother of the year nominated by Touma himself, do the honours"

"A-Alright... ugh, this truly stinks"

"Just think of it as fertilizer for one of your plants"

"Very funny. You are the one who can deal with it remotely"

"No, I can't. I keep repeating that, but my power doesn't work on organic matter or something completely surrounded by it. For something that is within a human, like blood, or feces, or anything else, I can't control it unless it leaves the body and a certain time has to pass before my ability gains a grasp. This is why I can't just summon blood out and explode people left and right... not that I'd ever want to do it, that's gross"

"Oh my gods" Musujime groaned and waved her hand" It's not like you would touch the shit itself by touching the diaper, you know. But for your convenience, I just teleported the dump to the nearby bin. Now, I can go for new on..."

She froze in horror, looking around.

"Where is the baby?"

"What do you mean... she is right he-..."

Maidono froze as well.

They moved away from remaining Transcendents to not disturb them, positioning themselves on the bench near the exit of the park.

They turned around only for a moment.

But Lilith was indisputably gone, no trace of her present.

"Oh my stars..." Hasako whispered" We had one job... Touma will never trust us again"

"How could this happen? There were three of us, and there was a moment in which we all turned away look a bunch of stupid lemmings? ARGH!" Musujime groaned in frustration.

"That's not important right now!" Maidono said, fire in her eyes" We must know what happened. We need anything. Physical clue, recording from the cameras, or..."

"What is going on here?! Why are you yelling on the street!"

Three girls whirled around to see innocently confused Mitsuari Ayu standing just behind them.

"Oh, this is simply perfect! I don't know what are you doing here and I don't care, really" Maidono zoomed closer to the telepath, startling her even more" Can you extract residual memory from the area, like Mental Out does?"

"Y-Y-Yes, I can, but what even is-"

"Perfect. Baby missing, we fucked up, lot to fix, we need to get going, information needed. Where did she go? Extract it, now... please!"

(MEANWHILE)

Misaka Mikoto, Saten Ruiko, and Shirai Kuroko, tailing Touma and his group arrived at the scene, when the discussion began to heat up. As all present, they just stopped and, rather confused, started to listen.

"I think I mentioned the fact that I overwritten their story" Niang-Niang was saying

"Maybe you did. But why they don't remember they are related?" Touma shot back" This is just sweeping it under the rug"

"Listen, I did it because there was an inconsistency with the events I remember and with the story this succubus told." Niang-Niang shrugged" Reality changes all the time, and phases can overlap each other at times. I just corrected the proper structure of events"

"This doesn't answer my question. Are they related or not?"

"Why is this so important to you?"

"Because familial bond is important thing to be treasured. We have no right to rid them of it, if it's actually real"

"Well, in majority of possible version of the world they are related in some form or way. There are phases in which Bologna Succubus really is a true demon, and had a child after thousands of years. There are phases where Shokuhou Misaki is a descendant of hers. The point is, some form of bond truly exists. And yet..."

"What about this one?"

"It all depends. "this time, it was Othinus who added her bit to the conversation" Each manipulation of reality changes it. Magic Gods shift reality all the time. And good, old Alice Anotherbibble did it on even more subconscious level"

"If you make and undo a thread, incorporating into millions of different combinations, who knows what is truly at the very bottom, which was the first one. And you can't ask the tapestry what it represents, you have to interpret it" surprisingly, it was Vidhatri who spoke up quietly.

"But I thought that Imagine Breaker returns everything to that objective state" Touma protested

"Yes, this is true..."Niang-Niang admitted, sounding empathetic" but just because Imagine Breaker presents this objectivity to you, doesn't mean that you can actually comprehend it. Because you are still human, you will always alter the truth. The only difference between you and any other being in this world is that you can't hide under the protective illusion of ignorance. Wessels of Imagine Breaker are the ones who bear witness to the truth, even it slips through their fingers. They face reality head on, with all its depth and suffering, illusion being one luxury that they can never, ever afford. Right now, no one except us even knows that that past even happened. Only we knew of the change"

Touma was silent for a moment, before pointing at Bologna and Misaki, who were looking at him and at each other with ever bigger confusion than everybody else.

"Restore their memories. Please"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes"

"Well, all right then. Keeping intact the timeline that we know of, I am making them aware of their connection right... now"

SNAP!

Both Misaki and Bologna froze as if hit by two twin lightnings.

And slowly, very slowly, their faces filled with a tidal wave of emotions.

"I... I had a... I never... but I... back then, I thought... oh dear, that night... ghzhgb...when we made love, I... a daughter... but why...zzzzbtzzz..."

Bologna muttered in a shock, her Common Tongue glitching from emotions.

"I... remember. I remember discovering it together with Touma and being angry at you. I thought you abandoned me..."

"Angry at her?" Touma asked Niang-Niang

"A change like this retroactively changes time to match-up to a present day conclusion. So their memories were altered to fit it. Before you start glaring at me, it was necessary. If I changed their memories without changing time, it would look like a case of very complex delusions."

Touma heard about time travel stories where travelling to the past and kicking a stone caused a butterfly effect and erased someone from existence. He didn't encounter someone who could change the present outcome, which caused the prior experiences to regulate themselves to fit the modification.

Well, leave it to Magic Gods to be powerful enough to reverse the cause and effect.

"So, what's their story now?""

"To abridge it, Bologna Succubus was a regular human, a magician who had inclinations towards the area of expertise she is involved in even before becoming a Transcendent. Compared to other replacements for the role of Bologna Succubus, this particular woman became "divine cosplaying" many years ago. Due to magic modifying her body, she didn't expect to be able to bear a child. So she engaged with rather carefree lifestyle, until a miracle happened during an encounter with Shokuhou Misaki's father... and she became pregnant..."

Misaki blinked, her eyes not leaving Bologna's face.

"You are my real mother? My father... did he know? What about my... my foster mother then?

"Back then, her pregnancy coincided with mine...but her baby was stillborn"

Misaki and few other people gathered gasped.

"Your father is remarkable man, wise and gentle, but like me, he wasn't a saint, and had an affair... with me, that is. To cover it up, and possibly in some form of atonement for his behaviour to his wife, he ordered babies to be switched and presented to me and her. As such, his wife believed that you were hers, where as for me... well, I didn't question it, because..."

Bologna's voice broke momentarily.

"It wasn't the first time the problem of this nature occurred to me, so I kind of assumed that my baby didn't make it... he apologized to me, we parted to go our separate ways, and I went on with my life, thinking I never had a child. Until I recently learned it wasn't true. I know it's so complicated and messed up... but I am happy, you know"

She smiled lightly, her heart irises mirroring into Misaki's starry ones.

"Are you?"

"It's a lot of revelation ability... I think those feelings will come to me in time. Although, that would explain a few things. My blond hair doesn't resemble any of my parents. Dad always said that we had some overseas relatives and that it skipped generations... but it came from you didn't it. Ugh... that means that it's actually me who copied you in a way..."

"I am sorry to interrupt" Shirai Kuroko's voice went over a group" I realize some very important reunion is going on, but mother or not, can we please explain why she has horns and wings? What even is going on-"

"Ah, don't question anything that seems out of place regarding any of us for the rest of the day. Don't remember that you felt disturbed by this later on either" Niang-Niang said, waving in Kuroko's direction.

The frown disappeared from Kuroko's face and she nodded.

"Wings, tail, and horns. Perfectly understandable"

"Niang-Niang..."

"What? I have no intention of explaining everything to a stubborn girl, who has no mental openness to actually accept what I have to say at all. We will illuminate her when she has the right attitude for it"

"Regarding wings and horns... and a tail too... am I... you know..." Misaki asked." I know about Magic since Touma told me when we talked before... but... am I..."

"A demon? No, I am originally a human who started to wear divine attributes to harness the power. Even after those modifications, you are one hundred percent conceived as a human"

Slowly, the crowd started to disperse.

Touma walked over to Misaka, Kuroko, and Saten, and quickly relayed to them what happened.

"The history of Shokuhou's parent was fabricated?" Mikoto echoed" That seems..."

"Crazy. And... exciting. Like some mystery novel" Saten added.

"I would rather say vexing" Kuroko interjected" I still think there is something off here, but I can't pinpoint what"

Everyone started falling back. Misaki and Bologna fell behind, getting some space to have a talk. Vidhatri and Mut Thebes excused themselves, supposedly returning to Good Old Mary and Bleudewedd. Touma was walking side by side with Aradia, Othinus and Index.

As Othinus and Aradia talked with each other, and Index groaned about being hungry, Touma caught words from rather interesting discussion beside him, where Misaka, Kuroko, Saten, and Niang-Niang (who, probably to her entertainment, decided to just walk beside them) started to debate among each other.

"It is impossible for anyone to truly wield this kind of power" Kuroko stated firmly" To have influence over entire world and fate"

"But if something like this was possible, hypothetically, we would never know if our choices are free." Saten argued" But I don't feel controlled at all"

"Saten-san, everything we do is perfectly and rationally explainable." Mikoto said" everything we do is in accordance with laws of science we learn here. We don't really need much else."

"So it doesn't bother you that you can have no control over your fate? If all is dictated by laws of nature, you can know the future right now, because it's already determined"

"When you look at it like that, it's unsettling. But on the other hand, it is rational. And you don't worry about being wrong if you know there can't be any other way"

"I think..." Kuroko voiced her opinion" that maybe people can be free until they are not stopped by another person. Or until they breach the law. Just because someone can do something in theory, doesn't mean that they are actually able to do it in reality"

"But that's not the same! That's what courts say, but it can't make me not do certain things" Saten objected" I am thinking that I want to move my hand and my hand moves. How am I not free to do so?"

"Maybe someone makes you think that you want to move it? Or someone makes you think you move your arm when you are not doing so in reality?" Niang-Niang spoke for the first time.

"B-But... why do we even have the idea of doing something otherwise if some big manipulator of reality pulls all the strings?"

"Maybe it is a dream of god... a nightmare, so to speak. Sometimes, human minds cannot bare the possibility of losing control, so they either abandon the idea of having that control in the first place... or create false sense of security in asserting that control over and over again" the Magic Goddess slowly spoke.

"Well then, what do you think?" Mikoto asked Niang-Niang" Is this world ruled by fate, or are we free to do whatever we want?"

"Hmm, from my point of view... neither. Or rather, it is irrelevant, whichever you prefer"

"What do you mean irrelevant? Those are our lives. They are important to us."

"Your lives have infinite version of themselves across almost infinite number of phases. Neither is more true than any other."

"But we don't know anything else other than this version of our life"

"Well, then let's put it that way. Exhibit A... the Academy City's Hula Hoop and quantum theory that occurs there. How do you explain your esper powers or unpredictability of random interactions on level of atoms where few paths of destiny can exist at once?"

Mikoto's mouth opened and closed. She got nothing.

"Exhibit B..." Niang-Niang looked at Kuroko" is genuinity of choice. I doubt that free will you speak about is just hypothesizing about possibilities all your life. To be able to think about it is crucial, but it not enough. Just because you are limited by law does not actually determine you. Laws change as civilizations fall. Free will is about the genuine choice, not fantasy of it, that can never be called free will"

"As for you..."

"Achoo!"

She was interrupted when level 0 closed her eyes and let out a quiet sneeze, before returning to the conversation, sniffing slightly

"Sorry about that" Saten smiled sheepishly. Niang-Niang shook her head.

"Not a problem. In fact, there you have it"

"What?"

"Exhibit C"

"But... I just sneezed. There wasn't anything special here to make a point from"

"Really? Free will should not make exception for anything if humans are actually free, due to soul, or mind, or whatever else. Did you have any particular desire or will to sneeze now?"

Saten made a comically dumbfounded face.

"No? I just... had to. Because something irritated my nose."

"Thus, you did not do it out of your free will"

"But that's not fair. This is just how human body works. Some things are just automatic"

"Maybe so, but this very fact proves that there is some design in accordance to laws serving some function other than will of its owner. I can think of many possible scenarios where humans lack things you take for granted. A world when you have to think to voluntarily draw your next breath. A world when you need to control your own hearbeat like a gearshift. And many more"

"That sounds horrible!"

"Maybe it is. But the price of freedom is that you never know what will truly liberate you... and what will bind you" Niang-Niang yawned" For me, it doesn't matter either way. Free will doesn't make sense and I am not saying it because I can bend the world and seemingly change it. If we always have control of what we do in a given situation, one must be responsible for each single thing he ever did, and there must be a beginning. But it can't be, because one cannot will anything out of nothing."

"But it doesn't explain anything"

"For someone stuck being tied down by laws of this world, maybe. But if someone is causal force in itself... that is, a god... things look much different"

"What kind of science-fiction books do you read?"

Touma snapped back to reality at Index's particularly loud groan about dinner.

"Don't worry." he reassured her" Kaibi and the girls are waiting for us, and we will soon make something nice. We are soon be home"

(SOME TIME EARLIER)

"I don't know where are we but we are clearly far away from home" Maidono groaned.

"Musujime-san, you really know how to drive?"

"Yup, I am just out of practice"

The bus veered and drifted, taking an extremely sharp turn.

"I think I am going to be sick..." added green Mitsuari Ayu.

Earlier, they used Ayu's Mental Stinger to discover that Lilith very swiftly crawled into one of the packages designated for the shipment into the military subsection of Academy City's airport. The box was then sealed and loaded into the truck.

According to Ayu, the box was huge, but they didn't know how much air it provided. They didn't know if they should feel alarmed at the fact that Lilith didn't make a noise that could be heard by a driver or someone that could stop the truck (was she sleeping?) or be furious at the fact that no one noticed an infant getting into the box.

They acted quickly.

Ayu used her ability to stop a bus and empty it of people, while Hasako changed a segment of road into molten, scorching magma, making the road behind them impossible to cross for some time.

And now, they were driving to the airport with insane speed.

But it was still not enough, given how much of a headstart Lilith had.

Maidono was shaking with adrenaline, as if she drunk five bottles of coffee.

If Hasako would be a gentle and a bit airheaded mother, then Maidono was down-to-earth, and kind of overracting type.

"We are going to take a shortcut"

"What? Where exactly-"

Maidono made a gesture of lifting something up with both of her hands.

The asphalt ruptured and rose along the ground like a peel, forming a gigantic ramp-like structure.

"Step on it!"

"Wait wait wait wait wait wait!" Hasako squealed in fright.

They jumped off the rump at speed so high that they soared into the sky, flying over couple lower buildings. The experience caused them to temporarily find themselves in the state of weightlessness. Awaki grunted, and the whole bus jumped forward in two bursts of teleportation, before falling onto the twin, descending ramp that Maidono made before the touchdown.

"What on earth made you think that was a good idea?" Hasako shouted, shaking Maidono. She hated flying with all of her heart.

But soon, they were at the airport.

"Alright, now with me here, we can do it without commotion. We..."

But Ayu didn't manage to finish as Maidono bolted outside.

"Hoshimi! Wait!" Hasako pursued her best friend.

Awaki patted Ayu's shoulder.

"That girl, despite her ability to blend in, is not a quiet type if riled up, so don't bother"

They quickly reached the truck with registration that they sought.

Before Maidono could strangle the poor driver with a seatbelt, Ayu quickly peaked into his mind, confirming that he had no idea that he accidentally had a baby on board and also that the box they were looking for was already loaded to the airport.

They entered the secured airport.

For anyone, that would be suicide. But they weren't anyone.

A group of six Anti-Skill members guarding the entrance was equipped with stunning grenades. As the name suggested, those thrown weapons were design to knock someone out or stun, not harm or maim.

All of the sudden, the pins of all the grenades rose up, vibrating, before being pulled out, one by one, arming them.

A chain of soft explosions rang out and the group stepped over the unconscious personel, Maidono releasing the summoned pins from her hold and Hasako bowing deeply in apology, promising to check on them later on.

From there, the advance was unstoppable, with Maidono disarming the weapons, Awaki teleporting people away, Hasako knocking them out by oxygen deprivation, and Ayu scanning the minds for clues on where should they go.

The cameras were turned over, crushed or teleported away. As they reached the main plate, Hasako roared, changing entire airport into frozen wasteland and grounding all the planes. Except...

"She is still nowhere to be found. Damn it!"

Maidono reached and pulled open the doors to the control center.

Soon enough, they learned one plane managed to take off before they froze the airport.

"Give me the altitude" Maidono said bluntly."They couldn't get far.

(10 MINUTES LATER)

"There is something on the radar" first pilot said, frowning.

"A bird?"

"No... it almost looks like a..."

Something, flew through the sky, defying gravity and stopping just below the layer of clouds, as the plane was ascending. It was not a bird nor another plane.

It was a girl. It was an esper.

A female esper named Maidono Hoshimi who shot forward like a missile, altering her course and moving through space without touching any surface, making use of high of telekinetic power granting her highest form of physical freedom.

It looked majestic from the outside. But the situation wasn't as simple. She bit her lips, as her trail of blood trickled down her mouth, nostrils and one of her eyes.

She never flew so fast before. She was lucky the plane wasn't going much slower than it could on the cruising altitude. Maidono was no Superman, she wasn't immune to the toll the velocity of her own flight would take on her.

She strained herself, and if not for the wind, she would scream with anguish. But she managed to reach the front of the machine.

Two pilots screamed as she stuck herself in front of the cockpit like a starfish. Her shirt displayed a message

'STOP THE PLANE! YOU HAVE A BABY ON BOARD!'

Pilot, intensely frightened, instinctively steered the plane to the right, and she was shaken off.

It was a cargo transport so he could afford it.

It seemed that they thought she was making it up. Or didn't want to stop, for some other reason.

She had no time for this.

"I SAID BE STILL!"

She reached forward. And a plane weighing 200 tons stopped in mid-air.

She felt its engines struggle with her telekinesis, but as she slowly angled her hand downward, the plane began to descend.

Unfortunately, so did she. Faster than she would like.

She couldn't keep herself afloat while also struggling against something so big. It was one or the other.

Maidono groaned, falling alongside the plane. The altitude kept dropping, and dropping and dropping...

And finally, when Maidono's skin started to crawl with how close to the airport they were...

The plane disappeared and repappered on the ground.

They entered Musujime's teleportation range.

Maidono fell down. She tried readjusting her calculations to levitate again...

But she didn't make it.

However, in the next moment, she felt herself rising.

She was teleported upside down, so vector of her movement was reversed, even if for a bit of time, slowing her down.

And then, instead of smashing into the asphalt...

PLOMP!

She fell into something resembling a jelly. If jelly smelled of dirt and stinking water.

She felt herself sinking, but then, an arm grabbed her and pulled, pulled with all the might.

And finally, with the sound of that resemble a plunger being drawn back from the toilet, Maidono Hoshimi emerged from the soft terrain and found herself in Hasako's arms.

From what she could see, a sizeable section of the runway, still surrounded by wasteland of ice, turned into a boggy swamp. There was even a frog in the midst of patches of green sticking out of brown water mixed with bits of sand.

Hasako led them into safe spot. Maidono grimaced.

"Put me down, you carrying me is super embarrassing"

"I decline. I always wanted to try it" Hasako panted, stepping forwad

"Your arms are shaking so much that it makes my whole body rattle"

"It's your imagination... ouch!"

"You falling on one knee is also my imagination I see"

"Hush, hush. This would basically imply that you are heavy. I would never say that to a best friend, but since you insist..."

"Why you... I have you know that one of my best qualities is that I have no unnecessary lipids thanks to my effort and exercise. It's not that I am too heavy, your arms are too weak. We have to work on them so they aren't like twigs"

"Pardon me, they are not like twigs, they are simply slender. And being delicate is just a part of my own charm"

They reached the plane, with Musujime and Ayu waiting for them. Hasako put Maidono down and supported her with her arm.

"Good work."

"If it wasn't for you teleporting that plane to the ground, this could be ugly"

"But if you didn't stop the descent with your ability, it would still crash. Teleportation can't straight out cancel the momentum while retaining the vector of movement."

"Let's say it was a team effort. If not for Hassachi, I would probably crashed too"

"Let's go get Lilith-chan" Ayu commanded.

Soon the doors to the plane bent and soared above their heads.

Maidono lowered her hand as everyone stepped inside. Ayu went forward, to check on the pilots.

Luckily, the space within the cargo plane was kept at stable temperature. Maybe it was due to some transported items.

Lilith was cheerfully and proudly sitting on the ground. She let out a delightful chirping sound, reaching forward towards them.

"How did she get out?"

"Beats me. Maybe the lock was undid during the landing or when I first grasped it in the air"

Hasako examined the baby, who happily nestled itself in her arms.

"She appears unharmed. Happy even. Maybe she was actually sleeping throughout all of this"

Maidono carressed Lilith's head, shaking her own.

"I am so, so very sorry... we were careless and underestimated just how curious and active she would be. When I will be a mother, I will never leave sights of my child"

"Ma..."

She froze, as Lilith clumsily seized a part of her shirt.

With other hand, she patted Hasako on the chest

"Ma... ma..."

"No, no, no..." Maidono shook her head" Someone who fucked up this much..."

"Hoshimi, language..."

"Someone who messed up like this doesn't deserve to be a person mistakenly called... don't smile at me like that..."

Maidono quickly wiped mistiness in her eyes as Lilith beamed at her.

"I think it means she forgives us. Lilith-chan..." Hasako said, gently kissing her forehead" We will not make such a careless mistake ever again. We swear"

"Good, all is well that ends well" Musujime stepped closer.

Lilith froze and then started crying.

"Oh come on, this is just biased." Musujime fumed" She totally absorbed what Touma says. Don't cry! I can be funny too. Look..."

She pulled up her twintails, making it into X-shape that covered most of her face.

"Where did Awaki go? Where is she?"

Lilith slowly stopped crying and looked around in confusion, before Awaki revealed her face again.

"Here she is!"

After repeating it few times, Lilith stopped crying altogether and started laughing instead.

"Wow... that really is better than simply watching..." Musujime smiled warmly" Look at you go."

"In the meantime, I am curious where Lilith actually was" Maidono said.

With a gesture of her finger, the box was opened.

They looked inside. And...

"Girls!" Ayu called backed, running from the cockpit" I checked their minds and there is something in here that you won't believe... oh, I see you already..."

The four girls looked inside of the box, frowning.

"What the hell..."

(AN HOUR LATER)

'Military section of Academy City's airport becomes an esper warzone as the group of vigilantes stop the illegal smuggling and theft of Academy City's technological innovation. Unfortunately, no footage or recording was preserved, and the witness seem to suffer from the mass case of amnesia, but apparently the group of four stopped the take-off of the plane filled with stolen technological innovations. Both Anti-Skill and Board Chairman issued thanks to mysterious group, however warning that such matters should be left in the hands of professionals...'

Touma shook his head, as he watched the TV.

"Never a calm day in this city. See, Lilith-chan, this is what one should always stay away from. As a resident misfortune incarnate of this house, I can pass that wisdom without a bit of doubt."

Kaibi shot a smug glare at Maidono and Hasako, who tried to make their best pokerfaces, with Lilith crawling between her laps after being fed.

The glare said

'I know, but it's just too hilarious to enjoy you trying to make it through this'

They barely got time to get back and get themselves presentable before Touma arrived. The Transcendent group went their way for now, and thus, only residents of Kamijou + Gokusai apartment, plus Misaka, Kuroko, and Saten were present.

Maidono felt her nose run a little from the cold of flight without any jacket or coat, and even with the outer layer gone, she could still feel the remnants of the swamp in her hair. She still needed a good bath.

Ayu modified everyone's memories, and came back with them, while Musujime parted ways with them, promising to call back later.

"How are you doing right now?" Touma asked Ayu, changing the channel.

She snuggled close to him, smiling.

"Seeing you always makes it better. My life is slowly going back to normal and I am finding myself back in Tokiwadai. Misaka-san was so helpful to me, I cannot thank her enough"

"It wasn't that much. Don't even think about it" Mikoto said cheerfully, smiling at her from her chair.

"And... do you feel safe?"

She snuck her hand into his.

"Don't worry about me that much. That creepy doppelganger of yours is gone, right? And Umidori-san still keeps in touch. Besides, I am a big girl. I will not be the one who needs saving all the time... in fact, I would like to save you if you have any problems... mental ones would probably be the best..."

She looked at him with tenderness.

"Do you have any psychological issues that I could aid you with?"

Nearby, Othinus snorted

"This human? You want an alphabetical or chronological list?"

"I am okay" Touma intertwined his finger's with Ayu's" I am sorry if I am being paranoid. It's just that you are almost as misfortune-prone as myself, and I can't help but be worried that something bad will happen now when you got your happy solution"

"Oh, that's so sweet of you." Ayu smiled" But I will be fine. I know you will come when I truly need you. We promised each other."

"This time will be different, that's true."

There was a doorbell sound.

"Ah, that's probably Mina"

And indeed, Mina Mathers arrived for Lilith.

"It seems that she is happy" she remarked with a small smile, as Lilith appeared torn between going into her arms and parting with Maidono and Hasako" Thank you so much. I was sure that she will be safe"

"Y-You... are welcome" Maidono said, her voice breaking only ever so slightly" Come on, it's time to go now"

"We will miss you. You can come to play with us any time" Hasako whispered.

"Ma! MA!"

"She really took a liking to you" Mina laughed, turning around in the door" She must had a day of fun and excitement"

'Oh, I bet she did...' two best friends thought at the same time, exasperated.

Kaibi put her arms around them.

"Don't worry, I am not telling him." she sing-sang" But I am soooo not letting you live this down"

"Geh!"

As time passed and girls talked with one another, Mikoto looked around and noticed the absence of Kamijou.

"Hey, where is this idiot?"

"Touma?" Index said, munching on the third additional serving she had after the dinnner" I think he said he was invited somewhere and that he will be back in an hour or so"

"Invited? Where?"

"Don't know. He didn't tell"

Mikoto rose up from her chair, but Kuroko grabbed her arm.

"Onee-sama, what ape does in his free time is his business. We shouldn't intrude without a good reason. Let him have his private moments"

"Shirai-san actually lecturing someone about personal space and privacy" Saten remarked with a smile" The world is ending"

"What?! I am a mature lady who knows a lot about personal etiquette... Saten, stop looking at me with such a pitiful look!"

(MEANWHILE)

Bayloupe's invitation took Touma to one of the Academy City's music venues in District 9. As he closed in on it, he saw a crowd of people with glowsticks, dressed in four different colours: white, yellow, blue, or red.

His invitation was assessed and he was led to the place in front row.

An idea started to dawn on him what was going on, but it was only confirmed when the lights around the stage and Bayloupe's voice shouted.

"Academy City, Igirisu No Shiki greets you once again! Good evening and konbanwa!"

"WINTER!" crowd roared, particularly the ones dressed in white.

The spotlight came to life revealing Bayloupe in a stunning white dress that went well with her silvery-grey hair. She opened her arms, allowing people to cheer loudly.

'Winter...that's a nickname, for the show' Touma realized.

Another voice echoed next to Bayloupe

"We are here to tighten bonds between of two glorious island nations through music and rock!"

Floris appeared, slightly flushed, wearing blue hoodie and sneakers, that made her look both rebelious and cute at the same time.

"SPRIIIIIIING!" another roar of fans, waving blue flags and lifitng blue glowsticks into the air.

"We are here to have fun! We are here to sing and let our bodies feel what they should feel!"

Touma knew that it was Lessar even before the girl, dressed in a risque yellow tank-top, the same hue as her dyed stripes, and shorts that stuck extremely close to the body.

"SUM-MER! SUM-MER! SUMMER!"

"W-We hope that you have as good of a time as we do! It's a pleasure to be here tonight!"

Finally, Lancis appeared, dressed in red miniskirt and with red rose in her hair.

"AUTUMN!"

The entire stage was illuminated, and Touma could read the big words on the enormous transparent, both in english and in japanese.

イギリスの四季

'Four Seasons of Britain'

In the next moment, Floris sat by the drums, Lancis placed her fingers on the keyboard, Lessar put a classic guitar on herself, while Bayloupe stepped closer to microphone, while also showcasing a base guitar.

"Here, with Japanese-English rock, we are here, Academy City! And 1 and 2 and 1,2,3!"

Touma could never expect this.

In the next moment, they started playing and singing. Entire place went absolutely wild.

He didn't know what it was. Maybe it was Bayloupe, who had enchanting, deep singing voice. Or playful expressions and poses that Lessar was making while playing. Or absolute ferocity of drumming Floris contrasted with calm elegance of keyboard-playing Lancis.

But, as the New Light was team above anything else, it was probably the combination of all of this. That and the fact that the quartet looked exotic and very beautiful in their creations.

As for the song itself...

Kami no menomotou Buritan wa

Konpeki no umi kara arawareta toki

Aoi umi de arawareta toki

`kore wa kuni no akashi zo'

shugotenshitachi utarimashita

Ruru, Brittania, umi o subeyo

Donna teki ni motte shitekushinai

Donna teki ni motte shite makenai.

It was a japanese version of 'Rule Britannia', song that Touma heard a couple times, either hummed or sang during his time in the UK.

As all the verses were sung, and finished with a dramatic guitar riff, Bayloupe shouted at the crowd

"Do you still want a piece of Brtiain?"

"YES!"

"Then, let's go for another one!"

And this time...

Kako no eiyū-tachi wa

Hōdan mita koto ga nai

Hazeru kayaku no iryoku sae mo shiranai

Demo tekidanhei wa buki to shitte chikara ni kaeru

Soreda dan da da da da dandan Eigoku tekidanhei

This one Touma wasn't familiar with, but apparently, according to what was displayed on the screen, it was a 'Song of British Grenadiers'

When this song also came to an end, all four members rose up and lifted their hands into the air, as crowed exploded with another wave of cheers.

"For the last song, it's something very special" said Bayloupe with a small smile .

"Dedicated to a very special person..." Lessar chimed in, winking.

"... Written by yours truly..." added Floris

"... and sung by all of us!" finished Lancis.

Three aditional microphone stands were brought. The vibrant yet calm sounds of guitar and piano permeated the air. Crowd got quiet, sensing the more intimate nature of the song.

Lessar began:

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

'I guess I have to say

That I was wrong

For better and for worse

Please hear out this song

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Because you drive me crazy

Because you drive me mad

Yet I was simply lazy

Oh yes, I was so bad

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I wanted to abuse it

The trust you put in me

I want to simply use it

But now I clearly see

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Bayloupe took the lead

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I will not cast away

How strong and kind you are

My heart is with you today

As I play my guitar

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

For family, for all of us

You are the guiding light

So let us give you music

To aid love in this fight

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I wish for you to see me

As I learned to see you

In pain and love, in hope and tears

I prove it to be true

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Then Floris came in:

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

You are insane, a reckless flame

And danger is your middle name

But all in all, you saved me through.

I guess... we want to be with you

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I guess, what I came here to say

Is that you're cool, within your strife

I know when we fall together down

You'll catch my hand, you'll save my life

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

You made my head a crazy mess

You made me sweat bullets from stress

But after all, cause I digress

I want you too... this I confess

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Finally, it was time for Lancis:

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I couldn't look them in the face

For fear of what I'll find

Shame, and guilt, and sad disgrace

Were always on my mind

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

But your kind heart and shining eyes

Dispelled the fear away

Thanks to your sweetness, and your heart

I smile and laugh, each day

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So forgive let me be brave

And say what is true

That each time I laugh

My love is for you

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Finally, all of the girls joined in the harmonizing crescendo for the finale. And then Touma felt that the eyes of each of the four girls look directly at him

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

In summer and spring

Through winter and fall

In your wildest dreams

In fierce pain and toll

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

We'll give you our best

We'll repay the debts

We'll make you laugh

We'll leave no regrets

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

In each waking moment,

We'll bring heaven to you

We'll be the sun and moon

To light up the love's hue

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So, my love, don't fear asking

Don't fret and don't be shy

Just give me the sign, and then

I will make you mine

The song ended. And the crowd went even wilder than before.

Touma was frozen in place, and didn't even register that his cheeks were slowly turning red. All he saw were four girls finishing the song starting directly on him.

He was still calming down when he started to make his way outside. Suddenly, he was yanked out of the crowd into the passage for the staff.

"Hold it, Lover Boy. You didn't think you will just leave without saying anything"

"Lessar? That was..."

"Wait, wait, wait, save it for when we are together"

And in just a moment, she led him to the backstage room where other New Light members rested.

"Can you help me reach the zipper in my dress?" Lancis was asking Floris as they entered.

"Sure... ugh, I am surprised you are not freezing in this outfit this late in the evening"

"It's just a bit chilly, but it's nowhere near Lessar's level of exposed. I think you hit the jackpot with yours"

"Not really, Bayloupe obviously has the fans who love her charming dress"

"Maybe but my dress is only warm when you move, and doesn't provide much warmth afterwards. Now, all said and done, the temperature difference is killing me"

Bayloupe sneezed, as if to emphasize her own complaint, and put a blanket over herself, before she, Floris, and Lancis noticed Touma who got in alongside Lessar.

"So..." Bayloupe said nonchalantly" What do you think?"

"Wow...just... wow..."

"Told you he will be speechless" Lessar nudged Floris.

"First of all... I would never guessed that you play instruments"

"You would be surprised what we can do to go by. We were not officially aligned to Anglican Chruch, and it's not like you get money by just being a magical cabal. We needed some civil part-time jobs during times we had no missions. Apparently, I have pretty good voice. Floris can always trash her stress away at the drums, Lancis knew how to play piano in her childhood, and Lessar..."

"What can I say?" the imp girl said, moving her hands in wave-like motion" I am good with my fingers in more ways than one"

"So, did you like it?"

"It was amazing! I totally want to see it again"

"Well, we don't mind a private performance when you are free" Bayloupe placed hand on Touma's shoulder, looking at him intently.

"You guys..." Floris muttered, hiding her face.

"My my, Floris, did you have any dirty thoughts?" Lessar mocked her and barely avoided a punch sent her way.

"But just so you know" Lancis clasped her hands over Touma's" our song was genuine. We really began to appreciate you more ever since we were sent here. Not just as a tool for UK's future"

"New Light will always be on your side... although it would be preferable if your interest aligned with Britain's own" Bayloupe said" I personally promise you that you won't regret any time spent with us"

"Y-Yeah..." Floris, not being able to directly face Touma, muttered as well" We can go play lacrosse...o-or go for a walk... or eat something together..."

"You think so small. First, we get you a maid outfit, and then..."

This time, Lessar was whacked on the head, as blushing blond screamed

"STOP MAKING IT HARDER!"

"Heh heh, I thinking making it 'harder' is not bad at all in this situation... gaah! Alright, I will shut up, I will shut up, stop choking me!"

"So, the question remains, if we succeeded in delivering the surprise?" Lancis asked.

Touma cleared his throat.

"I still can't join New Light... but if nothing crazy will happen in the foreseeable future, I guess I can go to UK and spend some time together"

"That would be delightful" Bayloupe agreed, giving Touma a half-lidded glance as she past by him" We should stay in touch then. I cannot wait"

"Thank you for coming. I already want to know what we will do next" Lancis waved to him, as she joined Bayloupe.

"B-Be sure to call okay?" Floris grumbled" I-It's not like I won't reach out each time... b-but I will call too, sometimes, okay?"

When three girls exited, Touma looked at Lessar.

"You are not going with them?"

"Oh, I am... but first, I want to give you a small present I already wanted to give in the morning"

"Oh yeah, you mentioned it... what have you-"

Lessar cupped his face with her hands and kissed him in a soft, tender way he would expect from anyone but her. They staggered against the wall, but besides that, there was no hands going under the shirt or pants, no agressive pushing, not even an attempt to use the tongue. It was the most gentle and innocent kiss.

After a moment of savouring his lips, Lessar pulled back.

She was just a slightly bit red and her eyes were sparkling in the rather endearing way.

"Mmm... that was nice"

"L-Lessar?" Touma managed to find his voice.

"Yes, Lover Boy?"

"Seeing you coy like this is just strange"

"Oh come on! I just... I thought I will give you a totally vanilla kiss. Like I said, I am not stupid enough to push the guy I like away by not being able to compromise. So I alongside what I want, I am trying to things you want. I hope you enjoyed. See ya!"

She moved past him, when Touma spoke

"Lessar..."

"Hmm?"

"That time when I said that there was more to love than physicality and looks, that it was important to know each other through other things before taking big steps..."

"Yeah?"

"... I am really glad you listened. Thank you. And this..."

His hand went to his lips.

"That really was nice"

Lessar turned around one last, giving him her brightest smile.

"You bet it was!"

(TWO HOURS LATER, AT HEAVEN CANCELLER'S HOSPITAL)

"Uiharu-san, are you alright?"

"Yes, I am fine. Kamijou-senpai, did you hear that..."

"I know. That's why I am here"

"Uiharu, you must rest. I know that you are occupied with this, but she is alright now." Saten hugged her friend" It just... we all have to adjust to this situation"

After Touma returned home, they were notified that Sukemi Rin was cleared for visits. So despite the late hour, Touma, Mikoto, Saten, and Kuroko rushed to the hospital, to the side of Uiharu.

And it came to this difficult moment, as Touma stood before the doors to Sukemi Rin's room.

"Are you sure you want to go in alone?" Mikoto asked in a worried voice.

"Yes, I am"

Saten looked torn. On the one hand, her worry for Touma was equal to Mikoto's and she wanted to keep him safe and away from possibly maniacal cutting esper. On the other, even if she voiced that thought, there was almost nothing she could put on the table against Rin's attacks should they really occur.

"I can go in with you as extra protection" Kuroko offered, rather unexpectedly" Teleportation should be faster than her attacks"

Mikoto looked at her at shock. Kuroko voluntarily putting herself in danger for someone she always slandered?

"That's very sweet of you, Shirai. But I have to come in alone. I have to talk to her in private, even if it means risking it"

"Bwah-... what the hell are you suggesting, you stupid ape? I-I am not trying to be sweet for you!"

As Mikoto looked at Kuroko, something struck her.

'Did I... behave like this when I first met him? Oh... no wonder he kept running from me...'

That and the fact that she tried to fry him at the slightest thing she dislikes in his behaviour.

Touma looked at Uiharu and nodded. She nodded back.

"Be careful" Saten put hand on his shoulder" I will be waiting for you"

"Me too" Mikoto added immediately.

"F-Fine..." Kuroko grumbled" I guess I will too"

"Thanks"

He took another deep breath and pushed the doors, entering the room.

Sukemi Rin, the girl with a white headband, his long time classmate, was looking at the window. Her small face was calm and reflective.

That is, until Touma went inside.

Her eyes narrowed and face twisted.

"Where is he?" she asked" No one wants to tell me anything."

"You mean... Kamijou No Touma?" Touma replied" He is no longer in this world"

"I see..."

"Sharin..."

"STOP USING THIS FUCKING NICKNAME!" the small girl's lips spat the vulgarity that would never go through them in normal state" Calling me Shadow Rin, or Sharin, is just awfully stupid."

"But you don't have a name of your own"

"I don't need a name."

"Then what do you need?"

"Kill everyone who hurts me. Everyone who made me suffer. I just want to hate, and hate, and hate!... to stop feel like I love anything at all!"

"That includes me, right?"

Suddenly, Sharin's restrains broke, slashed by her skin and she jumped out of the bed, facing Touma eye to eye.

"Yes... yes, I do hate you. You don't even know, but you abandoned me. You gave me hope and then took it away. You are the first one that should die"

"Yes, I am aware. And I wouldn't blame you for trying"

An attack was conducted.

And it stopped.

It sunk into Kamijou Touma's hand, which started to bleed.

Yet it didn't go all the way through.

Touma looked at panting girl sadly.

"Or perhaps hate isn't truly what you want. Maybe... you would want the truth"

"I don't... care..."

Her voice wavered, as she tried attacking again.

But this time, something even more peculiar happened.

Her right hand suddenly grasped the left one, seemingly independently of the overall harm intent, and pulled Rin's body away from Touma.

"No, no, I will kill him! I will!" she struggle against her own body" You cannot deny me this!"

"I love him too much to let this happen. I cannot"

The lips of a small girl shot back as Sharin's head wobbled, as if she was loosing consciousness.

She shot a hateful glare at Touma.

"This isn't over! I hate you! I hate you so much!"

"I know. And I can only atone for what I did to you, willingly or not"

Soon, visceral screams of the girl died down and she dropped to the floor.

Long moment passed, before the girl's eyelids fluttered open.

She noticed Touma and immediately tried lifing herself up.

"I... I hurt you again. I am so sorry...I..."

"It's alright now" Touma said calmly, sitting down close to her" It doesn't even hurt so much and I stopped the bleeding."

"The doctors..." Rin chocked out" I was told that I have split personality. That I was doing terrible things. I am so..."

Touma wrapped his arms around her.

"If anyone here should be sorry, it's me. I pushed you to this point, even if I had no intention of doing so. I didn't notice any of your feelings. All of it it's my fault. You suffered in silence for such a long time because I could not see the truth."

"No, I..." Rin sniffed, tears welled inside of her eyes. Touma embraced her gingerly as she wept onto his shirt" I was such a coward. When we lost touch, I should have talked to you. Or I should have moved on. But instead, I couldn't stopped caring for you. I watched over from the distance like a creepy coward that I was. I was afraid of losing you if I was direct and asked you... so instead, I played pretend to the point where you actually drifted away and I couldn't bare it anymore... all because I was scared of being rejected and forgotten."

In that moment, Touma understood something.

Power that revolved around sharpness, severing, and slicing.

And the fear of rejection, loneliness, and being pushed away.

Some said that the theory that esper powers reflected personality or hidden feelings of the users was exaggerated, but Touma saw examples himself.

Accelerator pushing away touch and attacks that could hurt him.

Kakine desiring originality and uniqueness beyond anything else.

Kaibi wanting to regulate distance between people to cope with her own relationship problems.

Kankyougami Hasako using nature she loved to protect her own peace form shattering.

And now, there was Sukemi Rin. That litterally cut away things before they cut into to her, severing bonds before they could suffocate her, and mincing the relationships that could misuse her.

"I know and understand what is like to fear trying because you may lose something or someone..." he whispered" I am... scared of being happy for too long. It's paranoid, but I can never relax, always thinking something bad is about to happen. Sometimes, I deny myself happiness... because I am not used to it. And also... I know what is like to want a hand to hold... and fear even reaching for it, because imagination that bad luck will take it from me is too terrifying"

"But you are so amazing. I watched you for a long time so I know... that you want to save everyone. That you always charge at the danger to help others" Rin whispered back.

"But I am still afraid each and every time. No matter what ridiculous things I am involved in, or what I do to save the day, at heart, I am still a human being. And being scared is not a sin. That means you value your own life. Trust me, losing the fear of death would be much worse. And being rejected pains you like this too, doesn't it?"

"But how do you... advance?"

"Because there is something even more terrifying for me. If I fall, the people I want to protect may be hurt, they may even die. And if they do, I will lose a part of what makes me happy. Others... others were always the best of me. So I am doing it not only for them, but for me too. Because I want to believe that even someone as misfortunate as I am can try and be happy. This is one and only thing I will ask in this life. Not wealth, not power, status, or wisdom. I just want a bit of happiness to call my own. And there was a time when I was almost convinced that if I died others would be happier. But I was proven wrong. So even if it's selfish, I want to keep living. To find my happy ending. I don't know if I can make it. But I have to keep trying. It's not the most eloquent reasoning, but it is what it is."

Rin looked up at him.

"I... also thought that being unseen is better. That I am not special and I would get hurt anyway. But watching you get away was too painful... I couldn't stop caring about you..." she tightened her hold on his shirt" I couldn't... because you were the first person to see me and just be with me without anything else required. And you kept showing up in my life, being kind to me, so I thought... I thought that maybe you... that maybe it was meant to be that..."

She paused.

"That dark side of yours... she comes from your negative emotions" Touma spoke quietly" I came here to offer you the truth. So, please, tell me: did she say the truth? Do you really hate me?"

After a couple of seconds, Rin slowly spoke

"I still... have feelings for you. I don't hate you. But I am hurt. Why..." tears flowed down her face again, as she choked out" Why did you leave me behind? I thought we were close, and you suddenly stared ignoring me. If I did something wrong or became too boring or anything else, you could just tell me. So why did you brush me aside without even acknowledging that I existed, even once? Why did you push me away?! WHY?! WHY?!"

Touma felt his heart ache at the painful wail, as she took a deep breath.

He needed to say it. He owed her that much and more.

"I did forgot about you"

The heartbroken look Rin given him almost made him break down as well. He quickly added.

"But not in the sense you think about. You deserve to know the truth. So, I lost my memories and..."

Touma explained that he lost memories of more than 15 years of his life due to an accident and because of that, losing the knowledge of many important bonds he had in his past life, including the one with Rin.

"Also, it is a secret. Please don't spread this around"

Rin nodded silently, touching her own head.

"You had be suffering from that too... I can't believe I didn't know..."

"Sharing it would solve a lot issues. But I wasn't ready, nor did I know there was a real need" Touma admitted" That's why I want us to promise something to each other. I will try my best to help with your other self and also make up for the time we lost. But to do this, we have to be honest with each other. If for some reason my relationship with you changes again, confront me about it, and I will make sure to tell you the reason. If you have any problem, come to me and we will talk about it, trying to find the solution. Alright?"

"A-Alright, I promise"

She gave Touma another hug. He gently stroke her head, a tired smile appearing on his face.

"It's nice to see you. It's late, but I am Kamijou Touma."

"Sukemi. Sukemi Rin. Nice to meet you again"

They stayed in that position for a longer while, before Touma stood up, offering Rin his hand to help her up.

"You said that you wanted to help me with your other self. How?"

"I am glad you asked. I brought along someone who might be helpful in your case"

Touma peaked to the corridor.

After a moment, a girl in a bodysuit and long raven hair entered the room.

"Hello, Sukemi Rin-san." She greeted the room's occupant with a curt yet polite introduction" I am Shutaura Sequenzia and I am in similar situation to you regarding my mind and memory. I hope I can provide the solution to ease your burden and give you someone to talk to about it"

(AN HOUR LATER)

Touma went back to his apartment. He was rather tired.

However, he was happy for calling Shutaura. Arisa had the gentleness for the carrot approach, Shutaura had the strictness of the stick, and their fusion, Mitsumi, had both. He was fairly sure a great deal of good could come from this interaction.

He walked girls to Tokiwadai, where Misaka and Kuroko departed, and then to Sakugawa Dorm, where he said goodnight to Saten and Uiharu. All the girls promised to stay in touch the following days and also wished him good sleep.

He didn't wish for anything other than that.

But he soon understood that things will not be that simple.

As he was about to open the door, he heard voices.

That in itself shouldn't be unusual. Index and Amazora were probably asleep, but Kaibi, Rikuri, and possibly Othinus were expecting him to come back.

But something about that...

He entered the apartment. And instantly realized that something was off.

Kaibi, Rikuri, and small Othinus were indeed sitting by the table, waiting for him. But their faces bore various levels of confusion and apprehension.

There was also a half-naked person that looked like she was wearing a swimming suit combined with an exotic dancer dress. Only after a moment did he realize that it was Kanzaki Kaori.

"Human, right on time" Othinus said, motioning to something on her right" Honestly, we are just as confused as you are. They just suddenly went in"

"Yes, and they were waiting for you" Kaibi scratched her cheek in puzzlement" Can you tell us what is going on?"

"Kanza-"

The Saint skidded in front of him, half hugging, half shaking him.

"S-Save me from this humiliation!"

"Save you? From who-"

And then he noticed that there were three other people in the living room.

"Sup, Kami-yan?"

"Tsuchimikado!"

"Long time no see."

"What are you doing here?"

"You see, my pen pal insisted to meet you right away. So I let her to this place"

Second person was a girl wearing a particular combination of revealing outfit with collection of torture tools. She was Sasha Kreutzev.

But it was the mature blond woman in crimson who dominated the room with her presence.

"Добрый вечер, Touma Kamijou. I am terribly sorry for dropping by unannounced. But ever since coming here, I was longing to meet you. Don't be mad at our shared friend, he is simply мой товарищ в поисках сладости. I would have sought you even without his involvement..."

Vasilissa The Beautiful eyed him and the others with a playful gleam in her eyes, like a beautiful yet dangerous predator ready to strike at any moment.

"... because I think you might bring me some excellent entertainment"

(BETWEEN THE LINES)

Kamijou Hyouka was sitting by the desk within the depths of Canterbury Cathedral. There were several books scattered in front of her that she studied by tracing her finger on the lines of text in the dimly lit space.

The only detriment that could oppose her work was hunger and sleepiness. Presence and absence of illumination did not matter to one robbed of light .

Suddenly, the blindfolded young woman lifted up her face and looked around, searching the area.

"Is someone here?" she asked unsurely.

Her younger brother Takami slowly came by the table.

"Ah, it's you" Hyouka nodded and returned to her book" I didn't realize aunt Mikoto was around"

"She is not." the brown haired teen said slowly" I went here with dad to ask you something"

"Oh?" Index's daugther smiled softly, lifting herself up and moving around the desk to position herself in front of her sibling." In my state, giving advice is as much as I can amount to. Your older sister will do her best"

"Onee-chan, you know the future, right? I've been thinking about the prophecy recently and I am worried that I can cause a disaster... that because of me and Fren, our family..."

Hyouka frowned. Her unseeing gaze shifted slightly, as she thought deeply

"You are talking about the child of hero's and sinner's blood? Why are you concerned about this now"

"N-No particular reason, I just..."

"Younger brother, I may not see, but I can hear in your voice that this is clearly not nothing."

"Well..."

"It's fine, you don't have to tell me. Let my advice be this: you are better not knowing." she said, taking a book and tracing the lines, until she found the fragment she stopped on:

'Vasilissa The Beautiful eyed him and the others with a playful gleam in her eyes, like a beautiful yet dangerous predator ready to strike at any moment...'

She liked this version of the story so far.

"But why?! Isn't it better to prevent the future if you know it in advance?"

"You sound just like dad. He was also that preoccupied with preserving the best possible future"

"That child... it can be either mine or Shimitsu's, right? Since she is 'sinner's blood'... onee-chan, you must know that..."

"You would deny yourself happiness you deserve with daughter of aunt Rikou and uncle Shiage just for one uncertain destiny?"

"N-No, but..."

"Takami... it is true that my library holds every possible version of the future described on pages of the books. And it's true that I read most of them. The events of alternative visions of what was, is, and will be"

"Then-"

"But I am not a god. It's not up to me to steer you in any direction right now. The one thing I learned from studying all of those endless, possible fates, is that there isn't a perfect measure that one can use to enact a perfect destiny"

"But there is so much good that can be done by using that knowledge. What if past could be changed and we can save your sight? Make you have regular life?"

"There are many alternatives when my life is saved" Hyouka bellowed." But... in all of them, something suffers"

Her brother stepped back. He knew that expression well. She was the firstborn of Kamijou children. Of course she would have the look their father had, when he completely disagreed to sacrifice someone for his own gain.

"Hyouka onee-chan..."

"When you create something, something has to be destroyed in return. Both with matter and time, and even more so, if something is given, something else will be taken"

(TO BE CONTINUED)

So, we are down here again. And this time, there is an excellent number of things to talk about.

1. In this chapter, I wanted to go back to the formula from earlier arcs and chapters, mainly with the sisters and Touma. I think them spending time together and building familial bonds (this time including Index and Othinus) is one of the things that made this story unique

2. Mina's presence is not random. I want to actually make something with Accelerator, although I admit, Kamachi's decision to put him in jail makes him really difficult to write at times. Because he can only sit there, menacingly watching and contemplating... and that's about it. Accelerator is so cool, and I kind of miss his days on the outside.

3. Aztec characters deserve relevancy. And I think one of the funniest ways to grant them one is a friendship of Kuroko and Etzali over their 'loss' of Misaka Mikoto. Also, I think Etzali x Xochitl has a great potential to flesh out both of their characters, and in making Etzali get through healthy process of getting over Mikoto. Because let's be honest, she is completely all for Touma and Etzali will just suffer for nothing.

4. Transcendents once more... As I got better grasp on Genesis Testament and studied the characters after reading them, I have much more confidence in giving Transcendents moments to shine. That includes newest ones introduced. This is a very risky manouver, as I am including characters that are just being established, and anything can be retconned at any moment. I am well aware of that. But you know what? That's a risk worth taking. If something major comes up, I will alter the events, but until then, I am including new Transcendent girls as well. I thought making Touma and Boldeuwedd antagonize each other would make an interestingly unique relationship in world which most girls like him. I think Touma and Vidhatri's relationship can have potential to be more positive yet unique. Also, I confess sincerely. When it came to Vidhatri, I am a Nephthys fan of great loyalty, but dear lord, Vidhatri is so gorgeous in her design, it's crazy. There, I would fail as new follower of this Transcendent without saying it.

And also two other things connected with it. We have Anna's arrival to expect in the future. And where is Alice? I can say that she is relevant, she will appear, but I have to be extremaly careful with handling her so for now, she is 'out there'. She will appear, but when and how depends on Kamachi's direction for GT, even if my story is situated in the future from GT itself.

5. Bologna and Misaki. You may have controversy about it, you might tolerate it, you might love the idea. I personally love the possibility of this combination and relationship, although I am well aware it is not perfect and rather in sphere of fan speculation. But here, I just wanted to have it and fix it from earlier retcon. Honestly, having Bologna be a human resolves a lot of questions of what would be if Misaki was half-demon or someone similar. It also gives her a lot more accessible motivation and possible story for her not being in Misaki's life. I just think that even if uncertain in terms of canonicity, this mother-daughter storyline has potential to be very endearing and breach the science and magic barrier in one of the most unique ways ever.

we also got a debate regarding reality changing and free will. Good philosophy never killed anyone. For anyone more curious, Misaka's view represents hard determinism, where free will doesn't really exist and world is determined by laws of nature and science. Saten's view is libertarianism in which world is not determined and humans possess nigh-unlimited free will. Kuroko's view is compatibilism, where free will and determinism coexist, usually on the basis of law or social contract. Finally, Niang-Niang has incompatibilisitic, even nihilisitic view in which free will and determinisim don't exist altogether from a wider perspective or are at least irrelevant if they do.

6. I just love New Light girls and their dynamics with Touma. They definitely deserve their own harem and/or family fanfic, I can probably think of one of my own. All the characters will, or are, (be) given a character progression and development, which is especially prominent with Lessar, but we are continuing what we saw in Chapter 16. Honestly, one of the best groups when it comes to possible backstories, inter-group interactions, comedy, and of course, love pentagon with Touma. They also struck me as a type that could work in a band setting, so here we go, blast of japanglish rock by lovely New Light.

7. Sukemi Rin and Touma share quite a few similarities and fears. Now, there was a moment of confrontation and sincerity between them. It was merely the first step, and nothing conclusive, but it was an important step to take. The story of healing between them is also someone that will not be pushed aside, as our background stalker needs love and acceptance, and is one of the most complex characters when it comes to depth of her emotional longing and strife for closness.

For now, this is it. Thank you so much for reading and see you next time!