Akari and Ranni found themselves back at the scene.
Shinto had gone off to ask around about everyone's whereabouts on the night of Akatsuke's death, while Evvls sat in the courtyard, chatting with a few others.
Akari couldn't help but be surprised by his social skills sometimes.
'Guess that's a merchant's charm.'
"Uhh, Akari, if this has to do with dark magic, why don't we talk to Travis?"
"Travis? Why him of all people?"
Ranni looked restless. "He basically is darkness. Maybe he'd know more tha—"
Her voice caught—and then stopped altogether.
Akari turned—and stumbled backward.
Ranni stood there with her eyes rolled back, her usual obsidian hair… turning silver.
"Ranni? Ranni! What's going on?!"
Akari scrambled up and grabbed her shoulders.
Her eyes were still yellow, but her pupils had narrowed—slit, like a cat's.
"Shit… must be blood nearby."
Akari blinked. The voice was too calm, too annoyed. It didn't sound like Ranni at all.
"Huh? What are you talking about? Never mind—Ranni, are you okay?"
The girl stared for a moment, then smiled softly.
"Ah, so you're… well, I'm… uhh, maybe she should find out first. Yeah, sorry. Just keep her—me—away from blood."
Akari narrowed her eyes. "Who are you?"
The girl sighed. "If I tell you, could you, like, pinky promise not to tell Ranni?"
Akari stared.
'How… childish. Ah, right. We're children… Does that mean whoever this is… is a child too?'
"Sure…"
They intertwined pinkies. It felt like Ranni—eerily similar—but something was off. Her grip was a bit tighter. Warmer.
"My name's Rain. I'm Ranni's sister."
Akari's eyes widened. She'd spent two months with Ranni, and not once had she mentioned any family beyond her brother… who she still hadn't named.
"Are you being serious?"
Rain smirked. "Yup, I'm Ranni's one and only twin sister!"
"Then… why are you in her body instead of your own?"
Rain's face, once smug, darkened. "I… Ranni really has to be the first to find out. Sorry."
Akari stepped back. "It's fine. So when will Ranni be back?"
Rain thought for a moment. "I could let her take control right now… but this isn't the right environment."
Rain ruffled her hair, messing up Ranni's neat style. It suited her, somehow, and Akari found herself liking it.
"I'll let her out once we're somewhere else. Too much blood here, 'kay?"
"Alright."
Before Akari could glance back at the scene, Shinto walked up.
"Any new info? And who's this? A new girl?"
Akari froze. Telling him this was a new girl, when he might never see her again, was a huge red flag. But she couldn't exactly say it was Ranni's twin sister who somehow shared her body… Not when she herself was in a similar situation with the original Akari.
Rain spoke up, mimicking Ranni's voice,
"It's me, Ranni. I decided to switch things up a bit!"
Akari thought she did a pretty good job.
'Must come with being twins.'
Shinto stared at her. "No way?! Ranni?! Where'd you even get hair dye? Silver looks good on you, though."
Rain's grin turned cocky. "Everything looks good on me!"
Akari couldn't tell if she was still acting or not.
"So, what's up, Shinto?" Akari asked.
Shinto smiled. "Ah, right, it's perfect you two are here! Let's hang out the rest of the day. It's not good to focus on gloomy stuff all the time."
Akari glanced at Rain for her reaction. Rain noticed, whispering, "It's fine. I just won't be able to switch back until we're free."
Akari nodded. "Sure, Shinto. Just us three?"
"Nah, Evvls is coming too. I invited Akio but… yeah. Anyway, c'mon, we're meeting up in the caf."
"Alrighty," Akari said, grabbing Rain's hand.
They followed Shinto to the cafeteria, chatting about random things. Once they arrived, they found Evvls.
The moment Evvls' eyes met Rain's, he muttered, "Oh… it's you again."
Rain's eyes narrowed, her grip tightening. Akari leaned in, whispering, "You good?"
"Yeah, c'mon."
They sat with Evvls, chatting easily. Akari found herself enjoying it. Despite the weight of her past life, the longer she spent in this childlike body, the more accustomed she became.
'She wouldn't trade this moment for anything.'
"Hey, Akari, did you unlock your soul weapon?" Shinto's voice snapped her back.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, but I don't really know what it does yet."
Shinto's confusion faded into a grin. "Then it's decided! The talent show goes on!"
Evvls sighed. "I still don't like this idea."
Rain smirked, still mimicking Ranni. "Oh c'mon, you wuss! This'll be fun, right, Akari?"
"Wait, what's going on? I zoned out."
"Shinto wants us to show off our soul weapons to see who has the coolest one."
Akari was intrigued. She'd thought soul weapons were rare, but here they were.
"Oh, yeah, that sounds fun. Let's do it!"
The four headed to the courtyard.
"Will these cuffs even let us use our soul weapons?" Akari asked, staring at the black cuffs on her wrists.
"They only restrict mana, so soul weapons are fair game," Evvls replied calmly, less talkative than usual but just as knowledgeable.
"Is it even safe for the guards at that point?" Rain asked, a smirk on her face.
Shinto laughed. "Like any of us can escape with just soul weapons. We're just kids, after all."
"Mmm, I guess you're right…" Rain admitted.
Shinto stepped into the courtyard. "So, who wants to go first?"
"Since it was your idea, you should go first," Rain said immediately.
Akari nodded, eager to see someone's soul weapon.
"Ah, you're right. Give me a sec—it's been a while."
'Will this actually be a weapon? Is this how he's so good at gathering info? How did he even unlock his?'
Shinto closed his eyes. Black sparks danced around his arms. It wasn't mana—his yellow bracelet wouldn't allow it.
The sparks compressed, turning tangible, then shifting to a liquid sludge.
"Phew…" Shinto exhaled.
Black sludge clung to his hands, forming gauntlets.
"I haven't named these yet, but they're super flexible. I can use them like extensions of my body."
The gauntlets stretched toward Akari and Evvls like tendrils.
"Ew, how disgusting…" Rain said.
"How mean!" Shinto yelped, dramatically falling back as the tendrils snapped away.
Akari thought it suited Shinto—flexible, eager to reach out, a reflection of his personality.
'Just as I thought, soul weapons are awesome.'
"Why don't you go next then, Ranni," Evvls said, smirking at Shinto's theatrics.
Rain froze. "Right…"
She leaned toward Akari, whispering, "So, I never unlocked my own, but Ranni did, so I'll use hers."
Akari nodded, recalling the original Akari's words:
[I'm glad you're making good use of my soul weapon, but mine alone won't be enough for our fate.]
'Right, I'm doing the same thing…'
Rain raised her hand, smirking. A dim light flickered, coalescing into a transparent wooden sword.
"Oh my goodness! Ranni, you've grown!"
Rain's excitement slipped, forgetting she was supposed to be Ranni.
"Ehem!"
Akari chuckled, seeing her slip, but it made her smile.
Rain quickly covered her mouth, then grabbed the sword. "Ah, right! Anyway, my soul weapon lets me bend whatever I strike. Awesome, I know."
Shinto raised an eyebrow. "Can we see it in action?"
"Sure."
Rain placed the blade at her side like a samurai, then slashed the wall. Instead of breaking, the wall bent and dented, staying that way.
"Uhh, is it going to be like that forever?" Shinto asked.
Rain blinked. "It shouldn't… but I don't use it often."
Slowly, the wall returned to normal.
"Oh, perfect! Just a slight delay," Shinto said, joking, "You talk like it isn't even your soul weapon."
Rain's eyes darted to Akari, a cold sweat forming. "Right! Anyway, Evvls, your turn!"
Evvls raised an eyebrow. "My turn? Says who?"
"Says me. Now show it!" Rain snapped.
Evvls chuckled. "I thought your weapon was so awesome you'd want the spotlight longer."
Rain mumbled under her breath, just loud enough for Akari, "It's not even mine…"
"What was that?" Evvls teased.
Rain lifted the sword. "Show yours or I'll cave your ribcage in!"
Everyone knew she was joking, but Akari shivered. With that sword, she could probably do it.
A bright blue light suddenly eclipsed the courtyard.
"A little warning would've been nice!" Akari yelped.
As the light faded, Evvls stood with a light-blue, chrome-scaled eastern dragon wrapped around his torso.
"This is Conqueror's Strength. It acts like storage for me. As long as it fits, I can store it."
He glanced at the dragon. "Its stomach isn't that big yet, but every day it grows."
"That's so cool!" Shinto exclaimed. "Got anything in it?"
Evvls slipped his arm into the dragon's mouth. "Of course. I'm a merchant. Most of my wealth is in here… and my other soul weapon."
Akari's eyes widened.
'Other soul weapon? Aren't you only supposed to have one? Me and Ranni are exceptions, but Evvls…'
Rain was the first to speak. "You have two soul weapons? How?"
"It was already inside Conqueror's Strength when I first unlocked it. But it's definitely part of me. I can feel it."
"Pull it out already!" Shinto urged.
"Way ahead of you," Evvls said, pulling out a white katana with golden accents along its blade.
'It's official. Soul weapons match their personalities. Evvls really is perfect for being a merchant.'
A whistle broke the moment.
"That's a mighty fine soul weapon."
Akio stood there, fresh scars on his face and arms, eyes drooping yet burning with rage and sorrow. His fingers twitched, as if holding himself back.
"Mind if I join this little talent show?"