The place Shiki mentioned wasn't within Mifune City but on a road leading to the hilltop outside the city.
Leaning against the railing and gazing at the view of Mifune City not far away, Naoki was slightly surprised. Shiki, of all people, had brought him to such a classic scenic spot.
"The view here is pretty nice. I found it during one of my nighttime walks. When I'm upset, I come here for a bit." Shiki said, leaning against the railing beside Naoki, propping herself up with both hands and looking down at the city below.
Coming here when upset?
"So, you're upset right now?" Naoki asked. "What's got you in a bad mood? Tell me, what could possibly upset the young lady of the Ryougi family?"
"What do you think?"
Shiki kicked Naoki's leg and gave him a sharp look, resembling an angry cat—proof she could get along so well with Atalanta.
"Didn't you say you have omniscent knowledge from the Root?"
"I never said I was omniscient or omnipotent. Besides, the Root's knowledge I have doesn't cover everything. There are things I genuinely don't know."
"Is that so… Even with those two girls by your side, I thought you were already quite close to my side, Natsukawa-kun."
Mid-sentence, as if a different person had taken over, Shiki's tone shifted slightly.
Naoki's eyes widened slightly—Natsukawa-kun. Plenty of people called him that, but in Shiki's case… it could only be her.
"This is Ryougi Shiki?"
"Yes, long time no see, Natsukawa-kun."
Smiling gently like a mother, Shiki waved at Naoki. "It's been twelve years since we last met, hasn't it?"
"I'm really surprised. I didn't expect you to show up now."
"Because there are some things I wanted to talk to you about, and it's been a while since we last met. It's what you'd call missing someone, right? After all, this girl's emotions do affect me to some extent. It's not a huge influence, but I don't deliberately reject that feedback either. As a result, it's built up a bit."
The words coming from Shiki's mouth stunned Naoki—or rather, their unexpected content left him momentarily unable to process.
Shiki missed him?
That Shiki?
And that feeling of longing even influenced this Shiki?
"You're quite the joker."
"It's not a joke. But it's fine if you react like that. It's not something this girl would do, is it?" Shiki said with a smile.
Indeed, missing someone didn't suit Shiki's image. Or rather, it didn't suit the Shiki in Naoki's mind. The decisive, free-spirited, almost masculine Shiki missing him… it felt a bit out of character.
"But Shiki is a girl, isn't she? No matter how much she acts like Shiki Ori, she's ultimately a female personality. She has the same thoughts as any normal girl."
"Liking someone, wanting to be with someone—these thoughts arise naturally, even if Shiki herself doesn't realize it."
"Shiki Ori? If I'm not mistaken, he should've… died when Shiki was attacked by Araya Souren?"
"Yes. Though it wasn't a big deal at the time, under that man's attack, the Shiki Ori personality was severely damaged and died." Shiki added. "After that, Shiki's heart has always been empty. It could never be filled, even though she acts like she doesn't care."
"And after meeting you, maybe because she wanted revenge for her prey being stolen, or because she could never kill you and was defeated multiple times instead, her competitive spirit was ignited by you."
"As a result, driven by that competitive spirit, she slowly started caring about me?" Naoki began to understand, though he felt a bit confused. This development was truly beyond his expectations.
Shiki, like a mother slightly exasperated with her daughter, gave a wry smile and shook her head. "That's the gist of it. But to be precise, it happened after you left. During the five years you were gone, her initial desire to defeat you gradually changed. Once those feelings shifted, they basically couldn't be stopped."
"Normally, with Shiki's personality, she'd never show it. But because of your interactions with that cat girl, she got a bit impatient. That's also why I'm showing up now."
At this point, Shiki stepped closer to Naoki, gently touching his forehead with her finger. "If I didn't say it, both you and Shiki would take forever to realize each other's feelings, wouldn't you? I'm a bit impatient watching it."
"So you showed up just to tell me directly?"
"Exactly."
Influenced by Shiki's longing and unable to stand watching these two dense people dance around each other—that's what prompted Shiki to appear now.
Normally, as someone connected to the omniscient Root, she wouldn't do something like this. But Naoki was the one exception she couldn't fully know. Coming from outside this world, Naoki was a subject never recorded in the Root's Swirl, so all Shiki could see was his past and present. His future was a fog no one could pierce.
And Shiki wanted to see the view beyond that fog.
"Natsukawa-kun, I'm entrusting Shiki to you. She's a bit dense and reluctant to express her true feelings. In everything, you'll need to look out for her more."
"Yes, I will." Naoki nodded, then smiled. "Actually, besides Shiki, it wouldn't be a problem to include you too."
"Eh? You mean… you won't even let me go?"
Shiki was taken aback. "You're really greedy, Natsukawa-kun. Having so much already and still wanting more isn't good. That incubus lady really spoiled you."
"It's not entirely Merry's fault. I'm a pretty greedy person myself. If I weren't, I wouldn't be in this situation now."
Maintaining four relationships—a non-greedy person couldn't pull that off.
Shiki smiled. "But if you want to take care of me, it's still too early. At least wait until you've taken good care of Shiki before thinking about how to take care of me. Well then, see you, Natsukawa-kun. Remember, don't tell Shiki about this."
"She won't have any memory of this either, right?"
Reaching out to support Shiki as she collapsed after the other Shiki's appearance, Naoki stroked her hair. "If only you could be a bit more honest, Shiki."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
At the same time, in a residential area of Mifune City.
Stopping in front of a house, Atalanta pressed the doorbell. "This is Natsukawa, here for a family visit. Is Fujimaru home?"