Date A Live

The sun set behind the buildings into the valley.

Tokisaki Kurumi sat on the edge of the rooftop of a large building, lazily rolling her head.

Behind her, lay several humans. No——to be exact, the humans in this building, were all in a state of unconsciousness.

With the the humans in Kurumi"s shadow would have their time absorbed, by the wide boundary that Kurumi possessed.

The clock hands in Kurumi"s left eye, were moving in the counterclockwise direction with a clicking sound.

This was to replenish the [time] that was unexpectedly used up a few days ago.

Kurumi exhaled slightly. The shadow covering the building slowly retracted to her feet.

Normally absorbing until they died would be the most efficient way, but this many people dying was bound to cause a disturbance. To Kurumi who had not yet fully replenished her [time], she needed to avoid getting found by the AST and that red Spirit.

"......Fu. It"s still far, from enough…"

She lightly stretched her limbs, raising her right hand as she said this.

"Zafkiel"

Immediately, a giant clock emerged from Kurumi"s shadow. The Roman numerals [I] [II] [III] which had originally disappeared had already been restored. However the [VI] at the bottom, was still white for some reason.

Kurumi raised her hand high up, taking the clock"s hour hand an ancient handgun into her hand.

Then, she delicately moved her lips.

"——Chet"

Accompanying Kurumi"s voice, the clock hands in her left eye moved clockwise at an alarming speed. The shadow that emerged from the Roman numeral [VIII] was sucked into the muzzle of the handgun.

After that Kurumi slowly aimed the muzzle of the handgun now loaded with the shadow at her temple, and unhesitatingly pulled the trigger.

Instantly, Kurumi"s head violently shook due to the impact through it, her body splitting into two.

No, the words needed to correctly describe it were a little different. From Kurumi, there emerged another Kurumi… putting it this way would be more fitting.

Zafkiel"s Chet, was a bullet that, when loaded and shot at herself could produce clones from "her past up till now" which would split from her.

The clones" physical limits were scaled with the amount of time that Chet consumed.

In other words, in order to produce long lasting clones. Kurumi would have to expend large amounts of "time".

"Honestly. It"s such a high maintenance spoiled child."

As she complained, she fired Chet at her temple once more. Immediately, from her body emerged another Kurumi, which got sucked into the shadows encroaching the roof.

A few days ago. On the rooftop of Raizen High School the clones killed by Takamiya Mana and the Spirit of Flame numbered about five hundred.

Although within Kurumi"s shadow, there were still a few clones left——she needed to fully replenish her time, to ready her army.

"Next time......I"ll definitely, not go easy on you, s.h.i.+dou-san."

Her lips curved into a smile, and she snickered. Just then——

"......?"

Kurumi suddenly turned behind. There was n.o.body——no conscious human on the rooftop at least, even as she sensed someone"s presence.

However, she quickly knew who it was. She exhaled, shrugging.

"Aaah, aaah, so it"s you."

Kurumi raised her eyebrows, and narrowed her eyes. There, a familiar silhouette stood.

However, an "unknown true form"...... to say that might not be right. The correct words would be that to clearly discern "its" appearance would be very difficult, and the chance of noticing its existence was also very low.

"——How"d it go? With him."

A strange voice that was hard to distinguish sounded, it was of unknown gender, and had an unknown pitch.

It gave a strange feeling. You could understand what it was saying, but you couldn"t hear half of what it actually said.

But this wasn"t their first encounter. Kurumi nodded with an unsurprised look.

"Nn. It was great. However whether it actually existed, I wouldn"t have believed it if I hadn"t seen it with my own eyes."

That"s right. A month ago, when "that thing" appeared in front of Kurumi for the first time, it told her something that she only half-believed at that time.

——The existence of a human with the power of three Spirits sealed inside him, or something along those lines.

But if he really existed......it would allow Kurumi to take a big step towards achieving her goal. With nothing to lose she tried to get close to him and got a shock. Indeed, Kurumi"s keen sense of smell detected a thick scent of Spirit energy from s.h.i.+dou"s body.

"But… have you given up on him?"

"Fufu, how could I?"

She scoffed at "that thing"s" words.

"——But right now, I need to prioritize storing up my "time" reserves. My current condition is insufficient to kill the Spirit of Flame. ——However, I haven"t given up yet?"

As she pointed Chet at her head, she continued speaking.

"To use Zafkiel"s final bullet — Yud Bet, s.h.i.+dou-san"s strength is something that I must have. I"ll definitely, eat him. I"ll definitely, not give up."

That"s right. She wished to avert that eternity.

The compa.s.sion that had allowed this world to go on and torment her heart up until now.

The path to fulfilling that wish, she had finally found it.

Within Zafkiel"s letter plates, each contained filled with Spirit energy.

They could all demonstrate their powers through consuming Kurumi"s "time" but——Only the properties of Yud Aleph and Yud Bet were somewhat different.

Each use required her to pay a cost equivalent to a Spirit"s lifespan.

If she used it, Kurumi might die on the spot.

Even if she survived, she wouldn"t have any strength left to complete her objective.

But with s.h.i.+dou, if she could "consume" three Spirits" worth of energy, Kurumi would then be able to use Yud Bet and still have enough to spare.

Zafkiel"s Yud Bet. Its power was—

"——Reversing time. What do you want to use it for?"

Facing "that thing" that seemed to have read Kurumi"s thoughts, Kurumi stared at it and frowned.

"How did you know so much? Let alone show it to others, I"ve never even talked about it before."

"So......why?"

"That thing" asked jokingly. Kurumi snorted.

That"s right. Yud Bet"s power, was to reverse time. It looked at Kurumi raising the handgun in her left hand, while slowly opening her mouth.

It was a bullet to go back in time.

Telling all the details to "that thing" which had an unknown form would not benefit her. However, her mouth moved by itself. Maybe it was because she wanted to say something that she had never said to anyone before, to someone to say it to.

"——Yud Bet. I want to use it to return to thirty years ago."

"Thirty years ago…? Why that time?"

"That thing" asked. Kurumi put a finger on the trigger, as she continued.

"Thirty years ago, the Spirit that first appeared in this world. The "First Spirit" became the origin of all the Spirits——my intention, is to kill it."

"......."

"That thing" didn"t reply. Not paying any heed, Kurumi continued.

"To erase from this world, the fact of "the Spirit appearing". To cause all the Spirits in this world, to "no longer exist". ——That, is my compa.s.sion."

After a brief silence, "that thing" spoke.

"——You, are surprisingly gentle."

"......!"

Kurumi frowned unhappily, aimed the handgun in her hand in front of her and pulled the trigger.

But before the bullet released from the muzzle could hit its target, "that thing" had already disappeared into the darkness.

"How is Kotori"s condition Reine-san?"

As he chatted with Reine who was returning to the bridge from the infirmary, Reine nodded.

"Aaah, no need to worry. She"ll wake up soon."

"Is that so......"

s.h.i.+dou heaved a sigh of relief. After that incident Kotori had been quickly retrieved by , but seems like there were no abnormalities.

"Then after that, Origami......what happened to her?"

s.h.i.+dou whispered worriedly. In the end the other AST members came to detain Origami and bring her back.

"......Nn, well, she did something of that magnitude. Although there were no injuries or deaths. It"s almost certain that she"ll be discharged, and I"m afraid she"ll no longer be allowed to touch the Realizers."

"......"

s.h.i.+dou couldn"t help but gasp. However, there was probably no other choice. Even if she had her reasons, she still revealed a top secret to the public, and put the residents in danger. Even if the AST"s main objective was the Spirits, this was an unforgivable thing.

Well, even if s.h.i.+dou thought about it now it would be futile. In conclusion, he could only wait until Origami"s punishment was decided.

s.h.i.+dou sighed again, and faced Reine.

"Then......I"ll also have to go back. Tohka and Yos.h.i.+no should be hungry."

As he said that, he pointed towards the ground——the Itsuka house to be exact.

That"s right. Tohka and Yos.h.i.+no who had rushed to s.h.i.+dou"s aid at that time had their powers sealed back into s.h.i.+dou"s body, and after they received some simple examinations at , they returned to the Itsuka house to wait for further instructions.

And they had also verified Kotori"s safety. It would be time for dinner soon, so he should go back for now.

"......Nn, yeah. They"re also worried about Kotori, so go rea.s.sure them."

Reine said in a tone that gave no objection and nodded slowly.

"Yeah. Then as for Kotori, you"ll have to take care of things."

"......Aaah, leave it to me. ——Oh yeah, s.h.i.+n."

As s.h.i.+dou was about to leave the bridge, Reine"s voice came from behind. Reine then deeply lowered her head.

"......Sorry."

"Eh...?"

Completely unable to understand the sudden situation in front of him, s.h.i.+dou said in a stricken voice.

"What, how, what happened Reine-san, why did you suddenly......"

"...About today"s incident, it was completely due to my misjudgment. I made you worry unnecessarily, and in the end exposed you to danger......I am really sorry."

"No, how could it......"

It got so solemn suddenly, that he couldn"t calm down. s.h.i.+dou felt something uncomfortable pressing against his body. What could be the misjudgment that she said be——

At this thought, s.h.i.+dou let out a short "ah".

"Could it be, that it was to let Tohka and Yos.h.i.+no join in the date? Well......it was uncomfortable initially but in the end the two of them also helped out a lot......"

As s.h.i.+dou finished with a wry smile, Reine lifted her face and shook her head.

"......Although that counts too.——But, the misjudgment I"m worried about, was made even earlier."

"Eh?"

The unexpected words led s.h.i.+dou to open his eyes wide.

"Then what, was the misjudgment?"

As s.h.i.+dou asked in surprise, Reine slowly walked back to her seat, starting to operate the controls at the platform beside her with seasoned skills.

"To tell the truth, in the first place today"s date shouldn"t have proceeded. Two days ago——having s.h.i.+n kiss Kotori right after waking up, would have safely sealed her powers......However, because Kotori said she was really looking forward to today"s date, I was unable to say it out......Really, I"m very sorry"

"Ha......? N, no, this would be too unreasonable? I need to raise her affection levels first——"

Yes. Reine and Kotori did say so. To use a kiss to seal a Spirit"s powers, he needed to get their affection level to a certain level for it to work.

Just then, the display showed a strange image. An image he saw before. He remembered that it was a graph that showed a curve representing a Spirit"s affection level over time.

However, the image there now didn"t show the line representing the affection level.

No. He noticed it immediately. The line was straight.

——It ran straight, along the top of the screen frame.

"This is......"

"......Kotori"s affection to you, right from the beginning."

Having said that Reine turned the chair in s.h.i.+dou"s direction, pointing to the screen.

"......From the time we started monitoring Kotori two days ago. The affection level during this time has not changed at all. From the beginning it was at the maximum level......not even one change."

"Then, then......that means......"

Reine nodded her head.

"......Didn"t she say it in the end? Kotori, she loves her Onii-chan the most."

"Oh......"

s.h.i.+dou was dumbfounded——

"Uu......Ugaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

Just then, having received a sudden ferocious kick from behind, s.h.i.+dou fell forward. Like this, his face was buried in Reine"s chest.

"......Nn?"

As Reine looked down, she let out a surprised voice. s.h.i.+dou hurriedly resumed his posture.

"S, sorry for that......!"

"Nn, again."

After apologizing to Reine he turned back. Kotori who was wearing her uniform over her sick bay clothes was standing there red-faced.

"Kotori!? You"re awake——"

"Okay now quickly forget what you just saw! That was definitely an error with the numbers~"

"......There"s no such thing. There"s also nothing wrong with the system."

"Ten "La Pucelle" limited edition cream puffs!"

"......Sorry s.h.i.+n, maybe there"s a problem with the calculations."

As Kotori shouted, Reine instantly changed her words as she looked at s.h.i.+dou.

"......Haah, is it?"

That was a pretty obvious bribe. s.h.i.+dou scratched his cheek, and faced in Kotori"s direction.

"That aside, is your body fine? Shouldn"t you sleep for a while more......"

"Hmph, there"s no time for breaks. I need to immediately record the information."

"Informations and such......that kind of thing can be done tomorrow. Just rest well for today."

Kotori glared at him, as she took out the Chupa Chups from her pocket and put it into her mouth. Then she raised the lollipop stick, and continued.

"It wasn"t easy to remember it. Five years ago, the incident that granted me Spirit powers. When we wake up tomorrow, our memories might be reset again, so there"s a need to make an additional record of it outside of my and s.h.i.+dou"s brains."

"......Is that so."

s.h.i.+dou frowned as he gently made a fist.

The mysterious Spirit that appeared before Kotori and s.h.i.+dou five years ago. —Perhaps, that was the Spirit that killed Origami"s parents.

s.h.i.+dou could obviously recall its existence, but its true form was still shrouded in darkness.

"Don"t push yourself too hard, Kotori."

"I"ll handle this properly."

Kotori waved back as she walked towards the commander"s seat. Retrieving a small memory medium from the control point, she then went in the direction of the door she came from. Just then— she stopped while on the way.

"Nnh, s.h.i.+dou.......What you said before you sealed my powers......is it true?"

"Before I sealed your powers......what did I say?"

s.h.i.+dou searched through his memory, then "aaah" clapped his hands. That was to say before he sealed her powers, what s.h.i.+dou said to Kotori. —I like you the most, I love you.

Unable to control himself, s.h.i.+dou nodded his head.

"Of course it"s true. I love you, Kotori."

"......!?"

Kotori"s shoulders jolted, and in a state of being unable to calm down she kept opening and closing her fingers.

"Eh, ah, that, that......I, I——"

"As a younger sister!"

"——Is that what you meaaaaaaaaaaaaaaant!"

The moment s.h.i.+dou spoke, Kotori turned her body moving not like someone who had been sleeping just now, and aimed a flying kick towards s.h.i.+dou"s head.

"Uguu......!?"

s.h.i.+dou got kicked back into Reine"s chest.

"......Nn, morning."

"S, sorry."

s.h.i.+dou hurriedly got up, and quickly looked in Kotori"s direction. Kotori had already turned and walked to the door.

"Kotori!"

"What!"

Rather unhappily, and not even looking back, Kotori spoke.

In an extremely arrogant and strong tone.

In a manner very different from, that crybaby Kotori.

s.h.i.+dou scratched his head and sighed, and as he moved behind her he said.

"......Those ribbons, really suit you!"

"......!"

Kotori looked back with a surprised expression. Then she and s.h.i.+dou looked at each other for several moments——

"Nn, thank you, Onii-chan."

She softly said, as she walked out of the bridge.