After leaving the room, Chihaya Kaiser didn't go straight to the station but instead sat on the stairs by the exit.
He opened the game panel and went to the quests.
[Quests]
[Marin Kitagawa's Follower Growth Plan]
[A Band for Chihaya Anon]
[A Date with Kurisu Makise]
The first two were no-brainers; he definitely had to complete them. But the quest involving Kurisu Makise gave him pause.
The sky was gray and overcast.
He organized his camera bag, collapsed the tripod, and strapped it to the outside, which also served as a form of protection.
He took out his phone and glanced at the time. It was still a while before the live show started; he had plenty of time to get there by train.
He decided to look up information on Kurisu Makise, and what he found made his eyelid twitch. He couldn't help but marvel at the vast gap between a genius and an ordinary person.
He was just an ordinary reincarnator, a pseudo-genius who could get good results without trying, completely incomparable to Kurisu Makise.
Just then, Kurisu Makise, who he thought would be talking with Dr. Nakabachi for a long time, suddenly appeared behind him.
"Finished already?" He raised an eyebrow, watching the girl as she came and sat down beside him, her red hair cascading over her shoulder from this angle.
"Mhm." She put her legs together, wrapped her arms around her knees, and gazed up at the sky with Chihaya Kaiser.
Gray and overcast.
He didn't know what she and Dr. Nakabachi had talked about, but in just ten-odd minutes, she had become this quiet.
He stood up. "Does the genius girl Kurisu Makise have worries too?"
"Of course. What do you take me for? I just know a little more than the average person."
Her previously somber mood was instantly stirred by Chihaya Kaiser.
Chihaya Kaiser smiled. "I thought geniuses were all aloof, so strong that they don't care about anyone's opinion, every step they take landing on the correct path."
"How could that be possible? Even a genius has fields they know nothing about." A shadow fell over her eyes, as if she were recalling something unpleasant.
Was it achieving results only to be unacknowledged by her father, or even have her talent envied by him? Or was it being seen as aloof by her lab mates, who kept their distance and alienated her?
A genius, a genius?
She lowered her head again, her expression seemingly unchanged, her reply stubborn.
"Well, when you get defensive, you seem more like a normal person." Chihaya Kaiser stood in the light, looking at the girl huddled in the shadows.
"After talking with Dr. Nakabachi, what are your thoughts on the time machine?"
"Well, as expected, it's not feasible."
In an instant, at least eleven refutable flaws flashed through Kurisu Makise's mind, but then she remembered when the four of them were together, Chihaya Kaiser had said, "Emotionally, I hope the time machine can be realized."
"Then don't worry about it." Chihaya Kaiser made a fist with four fingers and pointed towards the station with his thumb, continuing,
"Those two people from before were pretty interesting, they seemed really interested in the time machine too.
Actually, I've always been chasing a touch of fantasy. Sci-fi works too.
Want to set a time to go see them together?"
"Huh?" Kurisu Makise was taken aback.
"Well, if not, that's fine too." Chihaya Kaiser forced a smile, trying to make an effort for the quest.
He wasn't sure if the System would recognize this kind of invitation as a "date," but it was the best he could do.
Kurisu Makise crossed her arms. "It's fine. I... don't have anything else to do on this trip back, so I guess I can accompany you."
"That's great." His biggest fear was that Kurisu Makise would refuse; then there would be no way to proceed.
"But what exactly do you mean by a 'touch of fantasy'?"
She rested one hand on her knee and stretched her calf forward. Her slender legs, wrapped in black tights, were captivating and hard to look away from.
Her defensive posture from before had completely vanished.
For some reason, she felt a strong sense of goodwill towards Chihaya Kaiser, feeling he was someone she could confide in.
The boy was slightly taken aback, not expecting her to be curious about his 'touch of fantasy,' and began to explain.
"Well, that question? What do you think happens after people die? Are there souls? As a genius of neuroscience, do you believe in reincarnation?"
"...Souls? They don't exist."
He threw out a series of questions, catching Kurisu Makise off guard. She first denied it, then immediately began to explain.
"The material basis for consciousness is the thalamus and the prefrontal cortex. Consciousness only exists with a physical body.
Those near-death experiences can all be explained by science. If you don't mind being bored, I can explain it to you from the most basic principles.
The 'soul,' in essence, is the brain's misinterpretation of its own information integration process. There's no such thing.
It's just that religion has an unclear understanding of science and seeks its own kind of reason. Do you follow any religion?"
"No, I don't."
Faced with Kurisu Makise's 'are you an idiot?' gaze, Chihaya Kaiser raised an eyebrow and sighed softly.
A reincarnator is standing right in front of you.
A reincarnator with a System, no less.
He didn't know if he could say it out loud, or if Kurisu Makise would even believe him. He might just end up looking like another chuunibyou, just like Rintaro Okabe.
"Miss Makise, is it alright if I call you that?"
"No need to be so formal. Something casual is fine. I don't really care what people call me." Kurisu Makise tilted her head, stealing a glance at him from the corner of her eye.
"Alright, Makise."
He cleared his throat. "I don't follow any religion. I even think religion is the opiate of the masses, a safe harbor for the weak when they have nowhere else to run.
But I do believe that people have souls."
"A strange viewpoint. There's no evidence to prove the existence of souls, and you don't even believe in religion."
Kurisu Makise puffed out her chest, crossed her arms, met the boy's gaze, and asked.
"Can you prove it?"
"I can't, but I think humanity has always chased after a touch of fantasy. That drive has given birth to countless novels, manga, and games."
Chihaya Kaiser's eyes lit up as he extended a hand to the red-haired girl.
A person has to chase after something.
He worked hard to buy guitars and camera lenses, and he was just as fixated on certain special things.
Abilities and items that money couldn't buy.
He felt their fingers touch—soft, smooth, and a little cold.
With a slight pull, he leaned his body back.
Kurisu Makise was pulled to her feet. She let go of his hand, made sure she was steady, and nodded.
"I don't accept the existence of souls, but I do agree with what you said. It's precisely because humanity chases after that touch of fantasy that so many excellent works of manga and novels exist."
"Maybe you'll come to accept it someday."
Chihaya Kaiser smiled, still not revealing that he was a reincarnator with memories of a past life.
"I won't. When are we going to see those two?" Kurisu Makise changed the subject.
"...I have to go to a live show in a bit, so I probably don't have time."
After a moment's thought, Chihaya Kaiser said, "How about tomorrow? I don't have work, so I should have plenty of time."
"A live show?" Kurisu Makise showed her curiosity. In just a few short minutes, her mood had completely followed Chihaya Kaiser's lead, her earlier dejection almost completely gone.
He realized this was a good opportunity to complete the quest. "Yeah, a friend is performing, so I'm going to support them. Do you want to come with me?"
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