in that timeline. The me from five years ago.]“But the time I can be here is limited, right? I haven’t even searched for…”
[You don’t need to worry. Certainly, I must have been around there five years ago.]
“Around here…?”
s.h.i.+dou couldn’t believe he was this lucky. He raised his eyebrows while looking surprised.
“…It can’t be. Did Kurumi meet with me five years ago, too? You won’t say that, right?”
[No. If I remember correctly, there wasn’t anything like that. Even though I was around there, it was only to observe the great fire that suddenly occurred.]
“To see the fire?”
[I thought that this disaster might have been caused by a Spirit.]
“…”
Hearing her word, s.h.i.+dou started to sweat. …If he hadn’t sealed Kotori’s powers back then and they were discovered by Kurumi, they might have been her food.
Kurumi sensed something from s.h.i.+dou’s silence and slightly laughed.
[Please. Even I am not that low.]
“Ri-right…”
s.h.i.+dou vaguely answered her and coughed to pull himself together. At the same time, Kurumi continued talking.
[I was around there five years ago. But I haven’t met with s.h.i.+dou-san… I can guarantee that. However- No, that’s why this action has a meaning.]
“What do you mean?”
[Please think about it. If s.h.i.+dou-san, who hasn’t met with me, meets me, then… With only this, wouldn’t be the history slightly changed?]
“Certainly, it might change…”
[Anyway, please hurry. As I have told before, we don’t have any spare time.]
“Yeah… Understood.”
After saying that, he clenched his fist.
“Kurumi, think about it. Where should I go?”
s.h.i.+dou readied himself and asked Kurumi that.
And… we return now.
“…”
s.h.i.+dou stared at the figure of the girl at the top of the building, while he was trying to calm his heart that was beating like an alarm bell by taking deep breaths.
The Kurumi standing there was slightly different from his memories.
No… In more correct way, the only thing that didn’t change was her age. Her dress was somewhat different. She wore a monotone blouse and a skirt that had laces and frills. Her hair wasn’t tied up but in its place she had Alice band decorated with a rose. Her most characteristic part was her face. As if to hide the clock pattern, she wore an eye patch on her left eye.
When he saw that dress, s.h.i.+dou slightly knitted his eyebrows. Then, he asked in a low voice so that only the Kurumi in his head would hear it.
“…Kurumi? Why are you wearing an eye patch?”
[Please don’t worry about it.]
“Was it hurt or something?”
[Please don’t worry about it.]
“But…”
[Please. Don’t. Worry. About. It.]
She said it with such a strong tone, he decided to keep quiet.
At the same time, the five year ago’s Kurumi in front of him responded.
“Araaraara”
She said that jokingly while tilting her head to the side in a cute way.
“What are you whispering? What business do you have at this place?”
Kurumi said so in a relax tone. Though, she didn’t look she was relax at all.
She had a smile on her face, but her eye was observing his moves and behavior in a peaceful but accurate way.
But, s.h.i.+dou didn’t have time. He readied himself and opened his mouth.
“Kurumi! I ask a favor from you!”
“…Ara?”
When he called her name, Kurumi bended her eyebrows curiously.
“You know my name… You, who the heck are you?”
She said so while lifting her right arm. When she did that, an ancient pistol flew to her hand from the shadow under her feet.
Then she pointed its muzzle towards him with a smooth move. s.h.i.+dou shook his hand in a panicked state.
“Wa-wait a moment! I mean no harm…”
The moment he said that, a bullet landed on the floor right under him.
“Woah!”
“Don’t move without my permission please. I have some questions. If you don’t answer honestly, I can’t guarantee your safety.”
It seems if he doesn’t answer them, his heart will be stopped. He opened his mouth while raising his hand.
“I, I am Itsuka s.h.i.+dou. I came from the world of five years later! Kurumi… You have lent your power to me!”
“…, Just now, what did you say?”
As s.h.i.+dou said that, Kurumi’s face changed.
“If you are joking, you will end up dead.”
“I wouldn’t be standing in front of you if it was a joke! Please, listen to me!”
“…”
Kurumi narrowed her eyes as if she was measuring the truth in his words. Then, Kurumi’s voice that sounded like she was amazed by the situation echoed in his head.
[Araara… The old me is quite cautious, right? …I don’t want to spend any more time. s.h.i.+dou-san, please touch the me in front of you somehow.]
“Touch… Don’t say absurd things.”
“Did you say something?”
The Kurumi, that is pointing the muzzle towards s.h.i.+dou, made a puzzled face. Of course, that is natural. When looked from her point of view, he looks like he is murmuring to himself.
s.h.i.+dou, prepared for another shot, held out his hand towards her.
“Please. It is okay if the gun stays like this. Can you hold my hand?”
“I am not a naïve young girl that would do something like that when asked by a stranger, OK?”
“[Kurumi] says she wants to talk to you.”
“...!”
When s.h.i.+dou said that, Kurumi raised her eyebrows in surprise. s.h.i.+dou sharing his senses with a Kurumi from another era was Kurumi’s ability in the first place. So this Kurumi, too, should understand it.
“Fuun… Is that so?”
Kurumi cautiously took a step while staring at s.h.i.+dou and touched his hand.
Then,
“…!”
And like a weak current flowed thorugh, her body s.h.i.+vered a little.
[Long time no see… I wonder if it is okay to say that, right. Me.]
“…I understand. This is definitely my voice… right? –Just what happened in the world of five years ago?”
Somehow five year ago’s Kurumi, too, can hear Kurumi’s voice that echoes in s.h.i.+dou’s head. Indeed, this way would be more effective than any kind of persuasion.
Kurumi from the original world, briefly explained the situation. That we failed to change the history. And that, in order to try once again, we needed this era’s Kurumi’s power.
“… We need to use [The Twelfth Bullet/Yud Bet] like that, is that what you are saying, me?”
[Yes. That’s right. I wish for it, me.]
Five year ago’s Kurumi felt silent for a moment… Then she sighed.
“…OK, then. If it is this much, I will help you.”
“! Re, really?”
“Yes. However, the needed power will be collected from you.”
Kurumi stopped touching s.h.i.+dou and moved behind him. Then, at the same time she made a sound with her heel, she raised her left arm high.
“Now, now, come forth . It’s your turn.”As if answering her call, a giant clock’s figure appeared from the shadows. Angel . The thing that send s.h.i.+dou to this era, the angel that can manipulate time.At the same time, as he thought the shadows under Kurumi’s feet looked like they were spreading, they started to coil around his feet.
The next moment, a fierce fatigue attacked him.
“Uh, guh…”
He remembered this feeling. Right before he was being sent from his original timeline to this one, he had felt like this when he was caught by Kurumi.
“ - ”Kurumi lifted the gun in his hand above. Then, a thick shadow came out from ’s [XII] letter and entered in the muzzle.“Now. We are starting.”
Kurumi slowly turned the muzzle. He knew wouldn’t hurt but still his body became stiff in a reflex.Even though she saw his state, she still grinned.
“You said you were… s.h.i.+dou-san, right? I wish you a good luck.”
“…Th, thank you. Also, Kurumi.”
“? What is it?”
“I think that eye patch fits you.”
[…]
“Ara?”
When he said that, the Kurumi in his head sighed and the Kurumi in front of him relaxed her cheeks.
“… Your praise honors me. Let’s meet again, five years ago.”
Kurumi last said that and controlled the gun that was trembling due to the fierce magical power and pulled the trigger.
A jet black line flew out towards his chest from the muzzle.
The moment hit s.h.i.+dou, he felt as if his body moved along with the bullet.As if he was caught in the momentum of the bullet and his view went black.
Part 2[…dou-san, s.h.i.+dou-san.]
When he heard the voice in his head, he opened his eyes. He immediately understood that he had collapsed face-first.
He was at the same roof of the same building. Well, it might be misleading to say the same. The figure of five year ago’s Kurumi wasn’t here and the Nankou district which can be seen from here hadn’t been surrounded by fire yet.
“It was a success?”
[It seems so.]
Kurumi responded to s.h.i.+dou’s words.
Right.
He couldn’t understand the specific time but he had come back in time.
To a world before the fire had started.
To a world before Kotori had become a spirit.
And, to a world before Origami had killed her parents.
[There is no time to be lost in thoughts, s.h.i.+dou-san.]
“Ah, yeah…”
After being told that, s.h.i.+dou stood up and took a look at the view of the Nankou district that spread out under his eyes. He clenched his fist and whispered as if he was talking to Kurumi. “…Let’s go ‘n change the world.”
Kurumi was silent for a second, then affirmed by saying “yes.” After hearing her affirmation, s.h.i.+dou started to go down the building by the emergency stairs.
“Now, we have successfully returned to time before the fire occurred but… What should we do now?”
[We arrived to a good position with great troubles but it has suddenly become a mess, huh?]
Kurumi answered him with a teasing voice as if she was surprised.
“Guh… Th, there is nothing I can do! I mean, why have you been cold for a while?”
[There is no such thing.]
Kurumi said so in a pouting manner. s.h.i.+dou wondered if he had said something rude.
“Kurumi, is it about the eye-patch?”
[Anyway.]
Kurumi raised her voice to stop s.h.i.+dou’s talk.
[It was only an impolite act of rebellion and only that. The difference between the me now and the me you just saw is, that I know what is going happen afterwards. Let’s organize the situation based on that.]
“Ye, yeah…”
[First, what do we really need to do?]
Kurumi asked in the manner of a teacher. s.h.i.+dou started to think of an answer while running down the stairs.
“That is… To prevent Origami from killing her parents.”
[Yes, that’s right. Then, what can you do in order to accomplish that?]
“Something like… Stopping Origami somehow.”
[Certainly that is the easiest thing to do but, I don’t think that is quite realistic.]
“Guh… Th, that’s right…”
Origami, who had believed that was her parent’s enemy, is a devil that will definitely take revenge. As s.h.i.+dou raised his voice, he noticed that only that there had to be more to that.In addition, the power of the girls that turn into spirits is the strongest without a question. Practically, s.h.i.+dou needed to chase the girl that will fight with in a dazzling air battle with all his might.Naturally, the possibility wasn’t zero. If Origami paid attention to s.h.i.+dou and listened to him, there was nothing he couldn’t think of.
However, the time limit of the , which Kurumi had fired at the beginning, wasn’t that much. This might be the last time he could rewind time. It was dangerous to bet all to such optimistic thoughts.“Then… If I take her parents to a safe place… or something like that…”
[I see, there might be a possibility of doing that and not facing Origami at all.]
“Ri, right? Then…”
[But, I wonder if they will obediently do so, if an unknown teenager comes to their house and says that it is dangerous to stay there and tells them to run away.]
“If, if I explain the situation...”
[I am sure they will believe you if you tell them that you came from the future and that they will be killed by their daughter that also comes from the future, right?]
“Uh…”
He started to sweat when he realized how suspicious he would look.
Just now the Kurumi from five years ago, had believed in his words but that because manipulating time was originally her ability and… The sound of the Kurumi in his head had quite a lot to do with it. In the first place, if he had explained the situation to Origami’s parents whom had never heard about spirits, the fire would probably break out halfway through.
[Also… Even if you managed to get Origami’s parents to safe place, it couldn’t be guaranteed that everything would work out for real.]
“Huh? Wh-what do you mean?”
[What if the world retracts to the original timeline no matter what, then…There might be a possibility that Origami’s ray of light would be released before they could evacuate.]
“…”
s.h.i.+dou was shocked by those words. Certainly, it was as Kurumi said. At the moment s.h.i.+dou had returned back to this time line by the help of the Kurumi from five year ago, the world had subtly changed into one that they didn’t know about. It was dangerous to think to a.s.sume that everything will go on as they know it would.
…However, something didn’t make sense. He asked Kurumi while squinting his eyes.
“Kurumi. You said that it wasn’t possible to alter time, right?”
[Ara, I don’t remember such denial. I don’t have any proofs, so I just a.s.sumed.”
“…”
He felt somehow confused but this wasn’t the time to pursue such problems. He shook his head to pull himself together.
“Now, what do you say we should do?”
[Right…]
Kurumi was quite for a while as she was thinking, then she continued her words.
[How about making Origami-san realize that she was the culprit after the killing of her own parents?]
“Huh? Wh-what are you saying?!”
s.h.i.+dou shouted when he heard Kurumi’s proposal,
[Ara, you think it is against the common sense but. Wasn’t what reversed Origami-san, the despair she had when she had realized that the thing she thought was a foe was her own self?]
“Th-that’s right, but wouldn’t the fact that she had killed her own parents stay the same then!”
s.h.i.+dou started to shake tremendously.
Certainly if they used her method, they might evade her reversal. However, then the fact that she killed her own parents with her own hands would stay unchanged.
Moreover, the fact that her parents had died in the hands of a spirit would remain the same. In addition to that, her desire for vengeance was pointed towards someone else at the point. Towards Kotori who caused the great fire and possibly towards who gave her power…“Ah…”
As he thought that, he let out a small voice.
[? What happened? You stopped running.]
Kurumi said so in his head. s.h.i.+dou realized that he had stopped running unconsciously.
However, before moving again, he told the idea that occurred to him in a breath.
“Hey, Kurumi.”
[What is it?]
"The point is; if Origami’s isn’t there the moment she appears... Won’t it be good?”Part 3
Five minutes after that. s.h.i.+dou was hiding in the bushes while looking at the swings.
There was a single girl, who had her hair split to two, sitting on the swings. She might be 7 or 8 years old. She had melancholic expression and was boringly swinging while the swing squeaked.
There was no doubt about it. Five year ago’s Kotori.
“Kotori…”
He looked at her weary expression and had a feeling as if his chest tightened. Surely this day was Kotori’s birthday. s.h.i.+dou had gone to the next town to surprise her with a present, but… He didn’t think that she would be this lonely.
When he saw the lonely Kotori, his chest hurt and he heard a chuckle in his head.
[s.h.i.+dou-san, you are a complete pervert, right?]
“…Shut up.”
He was annoyed by her words and groaned as a reply.
Well certainly, he would be in trouble if he was seen in this scene in which him, a male high school student who is hidden, staring at a female elementary school student.
There would be flyers, which states that there was a suspicious person roaming around, being distributed around the city.
However, the young Kotori’s moment of s.h.i.+ning hadn’t been printed in his retinas yet.
s.h.i.+dou was… waiting.
For the arrival of .[Even so… You have surprisingly made up your mind, s.h.i.+dou-san.]
Kurumi said so in an interested tone. s.h.i.+dou hesitated for a second before answering.
“There is nothing I can do. Also, didn’t you support this idea?”
[Well, that is right but. Certainly, if you can drive away before Origami-san appears, there won’t any reason for her to attack in the first place.]“If I can do it… I want to talk.”
[Talk? With ?]Kurumi asked in a slightly surprised way.
[That is unexpected. I had thought s.h.i.+dou-san hold a hostility towards .]“…Very much. I can’t deny that. They are the one that turned Kotori and the others to Spirits… But, before that I don’t know anything about . I can’t ignore such thing, if I do I would be the same as the guys that regard Tohka and Yos.h.i.+no and the others only as disasters."When he said those, Kurumi stayed silent as if she was thinking something, then…
[Fu-fufu, ahahaha…]
She laughed at a time like this.
“Wh, what is it?”
[It is nothing… I only thought this is s.h.i.+dou-san for you.]
Kurumi continued after laughing a little more.
[However, I don’t recommend doing so. There is no point in talking if it is with that person. If it is the charming s.h.i.+dou-san, it would end up you being confused.]
“Eh…? Kurumi, you, about …”Then.
He stopped talking before finis.h.i.+ng his words.
The reason was simple. In his view… In front of Kotori who is playing in the park alone, there was a strange visitor.
Age, gender or physique unknown, [Something].
However, that was natural. As if its appearance was masked, [that] was covered with something like a noise.
…. The being that turned Kotori, Miku and Origami into Spirits.That had appeared in front of Kotori, now.
“…”
s.h.i.+dou looked at that figure and got goose b.u.mps. Kotori who had become Spirit . He recalled her painful expression.[s.h.i.+dou-san, you can’t act rashly.]
“…, yeah, I got it.”
s.h.i.+dou was restrained by Kurumi and sighed slightly to keep calm. He embraced his arms to stop his trembling. He pressed his nails to his palms and slightly blood oozed from there.
He shouldn’t stop Kotori’s turning into a Spirit. He was told so by Kurumi just now.
-After Kotori and exchanged several words, turned towards her and took out something like a red jewel.And, the moment Kotori touched it, her body stared s.h.i.+ne faintly.
“Ah, ah, aaaaaaah…!”
Kotori yelled in anguish.
At the same time, a terrifying heat wave with her in the middle spread around and a swirling flame rose.
“Guh…!”
s.h.i.+dou lowered himself and, mind-blowingly, he somehow reflected the heat wave.
A few seconds later, he faint-heartedly opened his eyes and saw Kotori’s figure dressed in a spirit clothing that looks like a kimono.
That’s how… Kotori had become Fire Spirit .“Kotori… I’m sorry.”
He muttered bitterly and narrowed his eyes.
“…!”
Then he resolved himself and dashed in front of the cl.u.s.ter of noise that had stood in front of Kotori, .“Hey!”
He screamed that.
When he did that, made a voice that didn’t resemble neither man nor woman. At that time the silhouette that is covered with mosaics in front him, looked like it moved a little. It seems like had moved their neck and turned their view towards s.h.i.+dou.At the same time s.h.i.+dou took a thin breath and glared at the part of that seemed like the head.“Hey, I wanted to meet you… .”Then, he quietly called the name of the noise in front of him.
There wasn’t any sarcasm in those words.
When he re-sealed Kotori’s powers, he had remembered his memories from five years ago and since then, somewhere in his head he had been wis.h.i.+ng for a reunion with this unidentified existence.
[Turning humans into Spirits.] An arrogant monster that had the power to make such an unreasonable phenomenon that defies nature.
It was the culprit of the changes of Kotori, Miku and Origami into Spirits and of the destruction and confusion that came with it.
Towards the [Thing] that had changed s.h.i.+dou’s life, he felt deep connection like it was his fate.
However, the words said towards such s.h.i.+dou were unexpected.[…Huh?]
let out a small breath and turned her body slightly.Of course, ’s body was covered with noise. From his point of view, he could only see a distortion in the air covered with mosaics.But, why might it be? For s.h.i.+dou, he didn’t have any choice but to believe that, that behavior was caused by dismay or disturbance.
Of course, anybody would react like that if they were suddenly called by somebody behind them. But… that was wrong. ’s reaction was clearly not because she was surprised.[It can’t be. You were… Why are you…]
“Huh?”
s.h.i.+dou made a puzzled face when he heard ’s odd reaction.“You… Do you know, about me?”
[…]
stayed silent when it heard his question. However that was, it wasn’t that it had ignored his question or didn’t want to give any unnecessary information or something like that… It was only that it was so dumbfounded that it couldn’t say anything.It couldn’t understand the meaning of what was happening and knitted its eyebrows.
There was a gap between the aloof in his memories and the behavior of [Something] in front of his eyes. That’s why, he even thought that the noise that was in his sight might have been a different existence.[…,…]
slightly moved its body covered in noise and run away while sliding on the ground.[s.h.i.+dou-san.]
“I know!”
As if pulled by Kurumi’s voice, s.h.i.+dou followed after .At that moment, Kotori who had sat down in the park had entered in his sight. The little girl that held a power which she didn’t know about said “Brother, brother…” repeatedly.
“…, Kuh…”
He felt like his heart was being pulled by that look but he strengthened his resolve and turned forward. If his memory was correct, five year ago’s s.h.i.+dou should arrive soon. He shouldn’t come across him.
And above everything… Now, he had to stop from running away. s.h.i.+dou was following the cl.u.s.ter of noise of which he had nearly lost sight as he wasn’t prepared with eyes and put more power in his legs.He succeeded in getting far away the park but just this wasn’t enough. s.h.i.+dou and Kurumi’s aim was to make and Origami who had come to this timeline not meet. In order to accomplish that, they needed to put to a place where Origami wouldn’t find her… That’s why, they had to not let her get Lost.[…But, that was an unexpected reaction, right?]
While he was following , Kurumi’s voice echoed in his head.[s.h.i.+dou-san, are you acquainted with that person?]
“… Not even a little, I don’t know anybody that has their whole body covered in mosaics!”
[Fuun… That’s right.]
He shouted while running in the town that is burning brightly and Kurumi answered in a somewhat tepid way.
It wasn’t like s.h.i.+dou was telling lies. He had only encountered with at that time five years ago. Well… Certainly it was that [Five years ago] right now.However, it clearly seemed like knew about him.Also, it was a fact that it had met with s.h.i.+dou or somebody that looked like s.h.i.+dou.
That’s it. DEM Industries’ Managing Director, Isaac Westcott.
When s.h.i.+dou had infiltrated in the j.a.pan HQ of DEM to rescue the kidnapped Tohka, that man whom he had seen for the first time had laughed in a really strange way.
The moment he was leaving, he had called s.h.i.+do:
Takamiya.
“…”
It wasn’t because of the intense exercise he had been doing but he felt his heart beat faster.
Takamiya. That was the same name with his self-proclaimed real sister Takamiya Mana’s.
Also… s.h.i.+dou who was the adopted child of the Itsuka family didn’t have any memory of the time before that.
“I am asking you, , what do you know about me?!”While following that continued to run away in the burning town, he shouted so.When though about it, there were a lot of things s.h.i.+dou didn’t know about.
What he was doing before being taken in by the Itsuka family.
Why Westcott knew about him.
In the first place, what that power he had was… What the h.e.l.l was that power of being able to seal Sprits’ powers?
He had sealed seven Spirits’ powers and had sent them into a life they lived together but he didn’t understand anything.
“Kuh…”
He ground his teeth in frustration and stepped on the ground strongly.
Then… At that moment, that was moving in front of him, stopped moving for no apparent reason. s.h.i.+dou, too, suddenly stopped his body that was moving with great momentum.“…, !”[…]
When s.h.i.+dou called ’s name, it moved its body that was covered with noise slowly. Somehow it felt like it looked at his way.[… , huh. So you gave such name to me.]Then, it murmured that like talking to itself and sighed.
[…I’m sorry. I suddenly run away… I thought it would have been better if we weren’t in front of her.]
continued talking. The [She] it is talking should be Kotori.He couldn’t understand its aim but certainly it was better this way for him, too. If they had stayed at that place, five year ago’s s.h.i.+dou would arrive soon and… Origami who had turned into Spirit would also come. […]
stood still without saying anything. It seemed like it was taking a good look at him.[…Ah, is that it? So it was really, you are…]
Then, it made a gesture as if it was convinced by him.
Then, at the same time, the noise covering ’s body dissolved like fog.“Wha…”
He opened his eyes wide.
What appeared from inside that noise was a girl.
She had braided hair and an expression that was gentle like that of a mother. He felt as if his head started to spin around. That face made him feel like he had seen it before and like he had never seen it before… It made a strange feeling. “That appearance…”
“You can’t see [Me] yet, that’s why excuse my impoliteness of using another shape… I could finally talk to you after all those troubles however, unfortunately I need to use this barrier.” When s.h.i.+dou talked, answered with a voice that definitely belonged to a girl which was different from the one she had used till now.Another shape. Which means, this girl wasn’t . But, why would do such an indirect thing…s.h.i.+dou thought about it for a second. kindly smiled as if she had read through his mind and moved her cherry colored lips.“…You, [When] did you come from? Looking from your appearance, it would be something like five or six years later, right?”
“! Wha…”
When he heard that, he made a startled face. That was it. He didn’t thought that could tell that he came from another timeline just by looking at his appearance.[…]
However, contrary to his surprise, Kurumi kept her composure. As if, she had guessed this beforehand.
continued with a quiet tone.“…Then… What business do you have? You have come this timeline using that bullet. You didn’t come only for sightseeing, right?
“…”
s.h.i.+dou turned back and glanced at the park had been in just now. In the air above it, the figure of a s.h.i.+ny Spirit hadn’t appeared yet.After he confirmed that, he opened his mouth slightly.
“You… You know about me, right?”
“…Yes, I know. A lot that is.”
answered him. He felt that he was trembling because of tension.“Think about it. Who the h.e.l.l… am I? What the h.e.l.l is this power?”
“…”
When she heard his question, she stayed silent for several seconds.
Then, she replied after swinging her head.
“… I would like to answer that but, I don’t know what kind of situation you are in. Also, I can’t tell it. In addition, there seems to be a kid that is eavesdropping our talk."
“Eh..?”
s.h.i.+dou made his eyes round and continued as if she saw through everything.“Right… Tokisaki Kurumi. I wonder if you are listening to me.”
[Ara, ara.]
Kurumi made a quiet noise in his head as if she was replying .“…Is this your business? If that’s it, you have used fairly extravagant amount of [Time].”
“…, no.”
s.h.i.+dou cast down his eyes and swung his head.
“The thing I am doing now is only my problem. I have another business with you.”
“What may it be?”
“Disappear, right now.”
There was a huge amount of things he wanted to ask. He had finally found somebody that knew his past. He wanted to know. Honestly said, regardless of what should be done, he wanted to learn about himself from this [Thing].
However, this was the thing he had to say right now. His priority was to stop Origami’s reversal.
“…Is that [I will kill you.] in a poetical way?”
sighed wearily.“Well… I can’t say I didn’t expect it to come to this. As a few year later’s you are loved by moody Spirits, there was a possibility that you could reach this idea. …Well, I didn’t want to think about it, though…”
“…”
It seems like thinks s.h.i.+dou came from his timeline in order to kill her. s.h.i.+dou clenched his fist without saying anything. It would be a lie if he had said that he held no hostility towards her. He can’t let off the fact that she had caused pain to young Kotori.However, now s.h.i.+dou didn’t have any intention of doing anything with her. After taking a deep breath to calm his mind, he swung his head.
“It is not about killing or not killing. I just want you to hide as soon as possible. You can go to the next world, right?”
“…Fuun?”
continued her words as if she had intense fun.“Is it okay if I learn? The reason for that.”
“That is…”
s.h.i.+dou hesitated to answer that.
The reason was simple. He didn’t know anything about the expectation or aim of the girl in front of him.
Origami would… From the future five years later, Origami who had been turned into a Spirit by would come here and attack . It was easy to say that. Then as a result, she would reverse. It was easy to tell that their aim was to prevent this.However, if this ’s aim was to reverse Spirits like Isaac Westcott from DEM, giving her this information would cause the opposite effect.“…”
He didn’t know how to answer her. While he was trying to come up with an answers, sighed impatiently.“…Well, it doesn’t matter if you can’t answer. I am sorry but my answer is NO. I have some jobs I haven’t done yet.”
“Wha..!”
When he heard ’s answer, he lost his temper.“Wait a minute! After this, to this timeline…”
s.h.i.+dou opened his mouth to tell her about Origami. However… That moment, he couldn’t move his body as if it was pushed by an invisible hand. Intuitively, it was close to the feeling of being bound by the Territory that AST and DEM’s Wizards deploy. He could hardly move his fingertips and couldn’t make any voice.
[s.h.i.+dou-san, what happened?]
Kurumi suspiciously asked but he couldn’t answer that.
Then, came closer to him slowlyAfter that, she raised one hand and touched his cheek
That moment.
“…!?”
An indescribable sense pa.s.sed through s.h.i.+dou’s whole body.
“Ah…”
He couldn’t understand why. But, then he understood.
s.h.i.+dou knew that feeling.
s.h.i.+dou, knew this [Something] in the form of a girl.
“I have to thank the Spirit of Time for today.”
While was touching s.h.i.+dou’s cheek with her hand, she said so quietly.“When the time comes, let’s meet again. That time…”
She continued her words in his ear.
“…Because I absolutely won’t let you again. Because I absolutely won’t make a mistake.”
And said those words.
“…!?”
s.h.i.+dou held his breath instinctively.
He couldn’t understand something. He wouldn’t understand sooner or later. However, he definitely remembers that he had heard those words before.
“…, …”
He wanted to ask who she was but he couldn’t let any sound out.
drew her hand back from his cheek and wore her noise again. Then, she kicked the ground and flew towards the sky.A few seconds after that, ’s figure was so far that he couldn’t reach her even if he jumped and the power restraining him was finally released.“Kuh, haa… Cough, cough…”
He fell down to his kness and coughed several times. However, it is not the time to do such things. s.h.i.+dou immediately turned his head upwards.
“That one… What, the heck…”
Then, just as he lifted his head.
He stared at floating in the air and a line of light came from the east sky.“…! That is…!”
His shoulders shook and looked at where the line of light was launched from and he was frozen.
Who stood there was a single girl. A dazzlingly pure white Spirit dress. Several [Feathers] turned towards the nemesis by the personification of murderous intent. Spirit of Ruin, stood there.
There was no need to even say. …It was Tob.i.+.c.hi Origami.
“Origami…!”
He screamed her name.
However, there was no way his voice would reach her. Origami looked straight to only and several lines of light were released like rain from the tip of her feather shaped Angel. While unbelievably dodged all of them nimbly, she moved in the sky like she slid through it. However, Origami didn’t give up. She followed after the fleeing and launched lines of light in the air without resting.What spread out there was, a few minutes ago… It was the second time, he had seen this view. He had seen it with five year ago’s Kurumi before she had sent him back. Kurumi’s earlier said words pa.s.sed through his mind. “What if the world retracts to the original timeline no matter what, then…”
“d.a.m.n it…!”
He swung his head to shake off the thought of resignation that floated in his mind for a moment and dashed to follow those two from the ground.
“I won’t let it… repeat!”
The scene he had witnessed recently crossed his mind. The downpour of light. The remains of people that had been crushed.
Thus, the pupils of the little girl whose eyes were dyed with hatred and the revenge.
Origami only wished to protect her parents. She had only tried to deny her fate that had been already decided.
They were such pure feeling but experiencing such tragedy couldn’t be good.
This ending…
“I will change it…!”
s.h.i.+dou put more power in his feet while yelling that.
Naturally he couldn’t follow Origami and who are having a tremendously high speed air fight by running on the ground.However… His aim was not to track those two. He continued to run in the town that was covered with flames without hesitation.
Before long he had arrived to the place he had been aiming.
To the place Origami’s both parents had died in [The World Before],
That was it. What he had to stop wasn’t Origami and ’s fight but Origami’s killing of her own parents by accident.“…! Found it…!”
s.h.i.+dou opened his eyes wide while running in the blazing red.
In front of him stood the back of the figures of five year ago’s Origami and… her parents whom stood a little away from her.
There was no need to grumble about it again. He had failed to prevent Origami and ’s contact. So, he had no other option than making her parents run to a safe place to change the history.It should be called fortune among misfortune and now was an emergency as the town was enveloped in the big fire. A man who hurriedly encouraged evacuation wouldn’t be an alien thing. The possibility that they would run away following his directions was enough.
However…
“…! Wha…”
He opened his eyes and strengthened himself.
The reason was really simple. At some point in the sky above… Right above Origami’s parents, Spirit-Origami and ’s figures stood. It seems they have come here while they had been engaged in a fight.“Kuh…!”
At the same time s.h.i.+dou bitterly ground his teeth, Origami launched a lot of lines of light towards to block its ways of escape.Then at the same time, the feather type Angel concentrated one and pointed its tip below… Towards the ground.
It was the exact scene with [Just now]. s.h.i.+dou’s face paled.
“Don’t do that, Origami!”
His voice didn’t reach her even if he yelled.
He didn’t have the chance of prompting her parents to evacuate anymore. The next moment, the critical hit would come down and would send two people to the heaven before they could even feel the pain.
“d.a.m.n it…!!”
s.h.i.+dou put more power in his foot and kicked the ground with the momentum.
[s.h.i.+dou-san!?]
As his did such an unexpected move, Kurumi’s surprised voice echoed in his head.
However, there was nothing else he could think to get away from the situation he had fallen into.
A great pillar had been launched aimed at the ground from the Angel that had concentrated its power.
“Uooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo…!!”
At the same time, s.h.i.+dou yelled with all his power and leaped towards Origami’s parents…
And pressed their back with all his strength.
“Wha…!?”
“Kya…”
When suddenly pushed like that, Origami’s father and mother both yelled.
They were pushed by his all might. They might have sc.r.a.ped something like their knee.
However, that much would be forgiven, right?
Even if, they might have hit their head badly. s.h.i.+dou, while his sight was dyed white, distorted his lips in self-mockery.
“…!”
Then, while he was like that, someone’s voice vibrated his eardrums.
He thought it was Kurumi but he was wrong. This voice clearly came from outside.
And then, right before his sight was filled with light, noticed it. It was five year ago’s Origami in front of him.
His eyes met with hers for a second.
Those eyes didn’t glow with the blaze of revenge yet. The pool of resentment weren’t being piled up.
“Ah… That’s good.”
s.h.i.+dou muttered slightly. Then, he was enveloped in pure white light and he lost his consciousness.