Licking my lips, I tasted sweat.
The temperature inside my Personal Territory was perfectly regulated. Humidity, air pressure, gravity—every parameter sat exactly where I'd set it. There was no reason for my body to be sweating.
Which meant the reason was simple.
Overwhelming pressure.
I tightened my grip on the laser blade in my hand—No Pain. The connection ports along my arms hummed, the CR-Unit feeding power into the weapon. My school uniform was long gone; in its place, the wiring suit clung to me like a second skin, armored plates and Realizer units layered over it.
A modern magician's armor. A machine that let a normal human challenge Spirits.
Normally, that was enough.
Not today.
"Uwaaaa—!" A scream burst over the comm line, cut short with a crackle. I heard the sharp tone that meant a unit had been disabled.
I clicked my tongue. "That makes... nine."
Nine silhouettes had already fallen. The only one still moving inside this training ground—this wasteland of concrete and collapsed targets—was me.
My gaze locked on the girl standing at the center of it all.
Takamiya Mana.
She stood in the rubble as if she were out for a walk, ponytail swaying lightly behind her. Her armor didn't match her frame at all—heavy shield-like units on her shoulders, waist thrusters, dense plating. But she wore it as easily as a school blazer, the glow of her Personal Territory wrapping around her like a second, invisible skin.
The shoulder shields rotated with a soft whir, blue edges flickering.
The rumor had been that she was a trump card, one of the world's best Realizer users, someone who had killed a Spirit alone.
Looking at the eight motionless AST suits scattered around her, I believed it.
I drew a slow breath. Hiding behind obstacles wasn't helping; staying back only gave her more time to read me. And every second we wasted in mock battles like this was a second not spent on real Spirits.
But I hadn't agreed to this exercise because of pride, or data, or any of that.
Without speaking, I remembered the conversation from the day before.
—
"Battle footage, play from timestamp forty-three."
In the dim briefing room yesterday, the screen had shown him.
Itsuka Shidou, standing in front of Hermit's barrier with that infuriatingly smug smile on his face, arms spread like he owned the sky.
I'd recognized him instantly. Of course I had. That back, that face, that ridiculous bravado—burned into my memory from years ago and from the apartment yesterday, his hands warm on my cheeks.
My heartbeat had spiked in a way I refused to analyze.
Next to me, a soft voice had whispered, "...Onii-sama?"
I blinked
Onii-sama..?
I'd turned. The new girl—we hadn't even met yet—was staring at the screen, hand pressed to her temple as if something inside hurt.
Kusakabe-san paused the footage. "Second Lieutenant Takamiya, problem?"
"N-no, Captain." The girl shook her head, ponytail swaying. "It's nothing. It's just..."
Her eyes had stayed fixed on Shidou's face.
"Who is that?" she'd asked quietly. "He feels... familiar.
Later, when the briefing ended, I cornered her.
"Second Lieutenant Takamiya."
She'd straightened, almost comically fast. "Yes! Master Sergeant Tobiichi!"
"You called that person 'Onii-sama' earlier," I said. "Explain."
Her cheeks had reddened faintly. "Ah—did I say that out loud? Embarrassing."
"Your relationship with Itsuka Shidou," I pressed. "What is it?"
Takamiya Mana had smiled with an oddly fragile expression. "If you help me with one thing, I'll tell you."
"One thing?"
"A mock battle," she'd said. "One versus all. If I win, I get data on all of you. And... Master Sergeant, if you join in, I'll talk about Nii-sama."
I'd agreed without hesitation.
If it had anything to do with Shidou, I needed to know.
—
Now here we were. One versus ten had turned into one versus one, and I was the last piece on the board.
"...Hey," Mana's voice came through the comm, almost bored. "If you keep hiding, time's going to run out."
I exhaled, letting my thoughts settle.
Running won't solve anything, Origami. You fight Spirits head-on. You can face one human.
I pushed off the concrete and rose into the air, letting the debris fall away beneath me. Mana looked up, eyes sharpening when she saw me.
"There you are," she said. "Finally done playing hide-and-seek?"
I didn't bother to answer. Words were meaningless here.
I gave a mental command; the thrusters on my back roared, pushing me forward in a straight line. No Pain pointed at her, blade retracted for now.
Mana's lips curled. "Straight charge, is it? How honest. I don't dislike that."
The shields on her shoulders detached and slid down to her arms, locking into place as bulky gauntlets. Light flowed along their edges.
"Murakumo—twin-edge mode."
Blades of hard light extended from the shields with a hiss, turning her into a walking guillotine.
We closed the distance at ridiculous speed. To any normal viewer we'd be streaks of light crossing the ruined training ground.
Inside my Territory, every millisecond stretched long.
Now.
At the moment our Territories brushed together, I smashed mine inward, shrinking its radius in an instant. The stable bubble around me collapsed to only a few dozen centimeters, crushing the Realizer-supported thrusters and armor pieces that had been flying just outside it.
Mass surged into my limbs. The thrusters on my back yanked like anchors, suddenly heavy.
I cut their connection with a thought, muscles screaming as I twisted.
The discarded unit, still hurtling toward Mana, transformed from a feather-light tool into a meteor.
Her eyes widened. "What—"
The severed thrusters slammed toward her chest like a gigantic bullet.
She reacted instantly, swinging both blades in a cross. Light flashed. Metal screamed as the thrusters were sliced cleanly in half, pieces spinning away in a spray of sparks.
She'd stopped the projectile. But for a brief moment, her arms were extended, posture open.
That was the window I wanted.
No Pain's blade ignited in my grip. I brought it down toward her exposed back as I dropped beneath her guard, all my weight behind the strike.
For the first time, I was certain I had her.
The laser edge kissed the armor of her CR-Unit.
And my entire body went numb.
"H—"
The sensation was indescribable, like being submerged in warm, viscous water shot through with electricity. Every joint locked. Even my lungs forgot how to move.
Mana turned her head slowly, eyes meeting mine over her shoulder.
"...That was close," she said softly.
I couldn't even glare. I was frozen—literally—inside her Personal Territory.
So that's it, I realized, fighting down panic. She didn't just strengthen herself. She could overwrite the Territory of others.
She rotated fully, Murakumo's twin blades humming as one rested lightly on my shoulder.
"Too bad," she said. "Checkmate."
The alarm signaling the end of the exercise blared above us.
"Mock battle concluded," the control tower announced. "Winner: Second Lieutenant Takamiya Mana."
...Of course.
—
Later, back in the hangar, the wiring suit felt like lead.
With my Territory deactivated, every movement reminded me how heavy a normal human body really was. I sat on a bench, staring at the floor, right hand clenched tight as if I could still feel Mana's Territory crushing mine.
Takamiya Mana... genius doesn't even begin to cover it.
I should be satisfied, I told myself. She's human. AST. On paper, we're on the same side. With someone like her, the odds of killing Spirits go up.
Yet my chest still burned with an ugly little knot of frustration.
"She's strong," I muttered, fingers flexing.
"You're amazing too, Master Sergeant Tobiichi."
I looked up.
Mana stood in front of me, already out of her armor, wiring suit peeled down to the waist. In each hand she held a plastic bottle of sports drink. She offered one with an easy smile.
"...Thank you," I said, accepting it. Lifting my arm made my muscles complain.
Mana took a long drink from her own bottle, then exhaled. "To be honest, that last move really surprised me. I haven't had anyone push me like that in a while."
There was no mockery in her tone, just genuine evaluation. Somehow that made it worse.
"If I had been stronger, I would have broken through," I said flatly. "What do I need to do to reach your level?"
"Hm..." She tilted her head, looking thoughtful. "That's a big question. I could say train more, refine your Territory, adjust your unit... but."
"But?"
"You already know all of that," she said. "You've pushed your specs about as far as they go alone. The rest is... experience. Situations where you can't afford to lose."
Situations like the night my parents died.
My hand tightened on the bottle.
Mana's expression softened. "Sorry. That sounded vague. Anyway, I'm still impressed. You really are the strongest in this platoon."
Compliments weren't particularly useful, but I filed them away.
"This is all to defeat Spirits," I said. "As long as you're effective, I have no complaints."
"That's right," she agreed, eyes brightening. "We're the same in that. People who treat Spirits as enemies. If we were the type to go soft, we'd lose."
She said it lightly, almost cheerfully, but I heard the steel under it.
For a moment, her features really did overlap with Shidou's in my mind—the same kind of straightforward resolve.
...No. It was more than that. Something about her aura, the way she moved, even the rhythm of her speech. The resemblance nagged at me.
"Takamiya Mana," I said quietly.
"Mm?" She blinked.
"As promised. Tell me about the relationship between you and Itsuka Shidou."
"Shidou...?" She repeated the name like it was unfamiliar. Then she frowned, pressing her fingers to her temple. "Ow. That's strange..."
A dull alarm bell went off in my head. I'd seen that movement before—Shidou, after the spatial quakes, when his memories fuzzed over.
"You don't remember?" I asked.
"It's just a light headache," she muttered. "Sorry, give me a second."
She stood there breathing slowly until the tension eased from her shoulders.
"...Right. Nii-sama." Mana reached into the chest of her suit and pulled out a small metal pendant. When she opened it, I leaned closer despite myself.
Inside was a tiny photograph. A young boy and girl, both around kindergarten age, standing side by side and grinning at the camera.
The boy was Shidou. Even younger, even shorter, but unmistakable.
The girl had Mana's face, complete with the small beauty mark under her left eye.
"A photo from the past," Mana said softly. "It's the only clue I have... the only proof there's a bond between me and Nii-sama."
"...I see." My voice came out lower than I expected. "Then you truly are related."
"Probably," she said, but her smile twisted. "The problem is, I don't... remember any of it."
"Amnesia," I said.
"You could call it that." She snapped the locket shut again. "When I saw the footage of him the other day, something inside jolted. I know I've called that boy 'Nii-sama' before. I feel it. But if you ask me for specific memories... nothing."
Then why, I wondered, do I have more data on him than his own sister?
"Even so," I said, "you insisted on that condition with me. Why?"
She bowed her head slightly. "Because I wanted to test you. And... I wanted someone else who knows Nii-sama to talk to. Master Sergeant Tobiichi, in this platoon you're the strongest. It's easier to be honest with someone strong."
"...I see."
I wasn't sure being "someone who knows Shidou" should be anyone's qualification for anything. But hearing her call him that with such obvious warmth stirred something unpleasantly tight in my chest.
Mana looked up again, eyes earnest. "Can I ask you something selfish?"
"What is it?"
"You have information on Nii-sama, right?" she said. "Within what you're allowed to share... could you tell me about him?"
For a moment I considered refusing out of pure pettiness.
Then I pushed that aside. Emotions were irrelevant. Data exchange benefited the mission.
"Very well," I said. "Name: Itsuka Shidou. Age: sixteen. Second year student at Raizen High School."
Mana nodded quickly, face intent.
"His registered family: adoptive parents currently overseas on work assignment, and one adoptive younger sister, Itsuka Kotori. He lives with her at present. Blood type is AO Rh-positive. Height, one-seventy centimeters. Weight, fifty-eight point five kilograms. Seated height—"
"W-wait, wait!" Mana flailed, cheeks flushing. "Why do you know his seated height?!"
"I memorized his records ," I said. "Upper arm circumference, thirty point two centimeters. Forearm, thirty point two. Bust—"
"Stop! I don't want to know his bust size!" she yelped.
I let the numbers trail off. "...Understood."
Mana slumped, looking like she'd just run ten laps. "...Those were real measurements? That wasn't a joke?"
"I don't joke," I said. "Those values are accurate as of last month's physical."
"R-right..." She rubbed her face, then peered at me between her fingers. "Um. Can I ask one more thing?"
"You just did," I pointed out, but I nodded anyway.
"What exactly is the relationship between you, Master Sergeant Tobiichi, and Nii-sama?"
I met her eyes and answered plainly.
"Lovers."
⸻
I hadn't really slept.
I'd lain in bed for hours, watching the faint light at the edges of my curtains change from black to gray, and it still felt like my brain hadn't shut off even once.
Spirits. Ratatoskr. AST. School tomorrow. All of that would've been enough by itself.
But there was more.
A skeleton.
And Two lines kept looping in my head.
Watch that white-haired girl... something bad's likely going to happen to her.
Origami.
And... a dark visitor is coming.
Those words, said by a short skeleton in a hoodie, in that strange empty gray space we met in.
On top of the warnings, he'd told about my... powers. I still didn't fully understand what I could really do yet, and I definitely didn't want to test them casually in the open. Just knowing they were there, sitting under my skin, was enough to make me feel off.
Put all of that on top of trying to act normal at school and be there for Spirits who could accidentally flatten a city, and it was a miracle I got any sleep at all.
"...This is stupid," I muttered into my pillow.
My eyes felt sore and dry. My body was heavy, like I'd been doing hard labor instead of just lying here thinking myself in circles.
Homeroom. Classes. Lunch. After school.
Just for today, the idea of going through all of that felt... exhausting.
I rolled onto my side and stared at the wall.
What if I just don't go? I thought.
One day isn't going to kill anyone. I could actually sleep. Just once....
I looked toward the window. Light was starting to leak around the curtain edges. Morning had already started without me.
"...Yeah, no thanks," I said under my breath.
I closed my eyes on purpose this time and let my body relax into the mattress. If I just stayed still and stopped fighting it, maybe I'd finally—
BANG!
My door flew open like someone had decided hinges were optional.
"Shidou!"
My blanket was ripped off me in one motion. Cold air hit my legs.
"Guh—?!" I curled up on instinct. "What the—?!"
"Get up, you lazy ass!"
Kotori's voice. Loud. Annoyed.
I peeked over my arm.
She stood in the doorway in her School uniform, red ribbons, lollipop in her mouth, glaring like the concept of me being still asleep personally offended her.
"...Morning," I croaked.
"Morning, my ass," she said. "Do you know what time it is?"
"No?" I answered honestly.
"Time for you to be out of bed!" she snapped. "School, remember? Tohka? Obligations?"
I groaned and flopped an arm over my eyes. "I haven't been sleeping well."
"Yeah, I can see that you haven't been sleeping," she said. "That's not an argument for staying in bed longer."
"It's an argument for not going to school," I mumbled. "Just for today."
"Denied," she said flatly.
I sighed. "Come on, just this once—"
"Nope," she said. "You think I'm going to let my big brother skip school so he can sulk in bed? Up."
She marched over and grabbed my wrist, tugging. I let myself be pulled upright; resisting her while this tired sounded worse than just going along with it.
My head throbbed dully. My eyes burned.
"Seriously," I muttered. "You have no mercy."
"Get up first, complain later," she said. "Wash your face, change, then we'll talk." She said that and marched out my room.
I sigh
Jeez...
I dragged myself out of bed, still in my blue hoodie. The room swayed for a second when I stood. I shuffled over to the mirror and caught a glimpse of myself.
I stopped.
"...Wow," I muttered.
My hair was a mess. My eyes were half-lidded, ringed with dark circles. The hoodie was wrinkled and stretched a little at the sleeves.
I looked like someone who'd got tossed in a garbage truck.
Or, simpler: I looked like a bum.
"Ugh," I said at my reflection.
In the bathroom, cold water helped a little. I brushed my teeth, splashed my face until I didn't feel like I'd fall asleep standing up, then went back to my room.
I pulled off the hoodie long enough to put on my undershirt and Raizen uniform shirt. Tie, blazer—no. I grabbed the blue hoodie again and tugged it back on over the shirt and tie, leaving the collar visible. That combination had basically become my default. I stepped into my slippers.
Better. Not great, but at least I didn't look like I'd spent the night in an alley.
I headed downstairs to the entryway.
Kotori was waiting near the door with her tablet tucked against her chest. When she looked up and really saw me, her expression changed for a second.
The commander face slipped. Her eyebrows knit, and something like guilt or worry flickered across her eyes.
"You look terrible..." she said quietly.
"Thanks," I said dryly. "Really boosting my confidence."
"I mean it," she insisted. "The dark circles, the way you're moving... are the Spirits seriously wearing you down this much?"
Ah... that made sense.
She thinks the spirits are the reason for my current exhaustion.
It was a fair deduction, given she doesn't know about the skeleton in my head. It was also partially true, this "dark visitor" has kept me very stressed lately.
But that didn't mean I saw Tohka or Yoshino as "Exhausting" in fact, quite the opposite.
"It's not them," I said shaking my head. "If anything, the girls are... good for me."
She frowned. "Then what is it?"
A skeleton in a blue, telling me trouble was coming and then handing me the ability to do something about it.
"It's.... Just a lot." I said plainly. "Don't worry I'm just getting used to it all, I'll be fine." I finished with a tired smile.
She furrows her brows her mouth curved into a slight frown.
"That's not comforting at all." she muttered. "You know that, right?"
"I'm still here," I said. "I'm still going to school, I'm still talking to Spirits, I'm still sealing powers. See? Fully functional."
She stared at me for another moment, chewing on the lollipop stick, then sighed.
"You're my idiot brother and my field asset," she said. "If either version of you breaks, my job gets harder, So.... don't be an idiot.."
"I won't, I swear" I confirm nodding.
She hesitated a second longer, then seemed to force herself to move on. Her tone snapped back to business.
"Anyway," she said. "Tohka."
I tensed a little. "What about her?"
"You've noticed how she reacts when other girls get close to you," Kotori said. "How jealous she gets. How unstable her output can be if that feeling spikes too hard."
"Kind of hard not to notice it when she almost blows me off the rooftop," I said.
"Exactly," she said. "So Ratatoskr has a plan."
I immediately felt tired in a different way.
"That sentence never ends well..." I muttered.
"Tohka jealousy training," she said. "We'll deliberately trigger mild jealousy events around you. Under controlled conditions. We monitor her emotions, see how she reacts, help her build tolerance before you have to seal more Spirits."
I just stared at her.
"You want to poke at her feelings on purpose," I said slowly. "So you can collect data."
"We want to keep everyone safe," she corrected. "Including you, including Tohka, including the rest of the city. If we know where her emotional limit is, we can prepare her better."
"She's not a test subject," I said. "She's Tohka. She's already trying her best with all of this."
Kotori opened her mouth, then paused when she saw my expression. "We don't have the luxury of ignoring risk factors," she said, but her voice had a little less edge.
"I already talked to her," I said. "I told her I might need to kiss other Spirits."
"And?" Kotori asked, eyes narrowing with interest.
"She didn't like it," I said. "Obviously. But she accepted it. On one condition."
Kotori leaned forward a bit. "Condition?"
"For every Spirit I kiss," I said, remembering the serious look on Tohka's face, "I have to kiss her, too."
Kotori blinked once.
"...She set up a kiss exchange," she said.
"Don't call it that," I groaned.
"And you agreed," she said.
"Of course I did," I said. "It was the only way to make it fair."
Kotori inhaled slowly, then let it out. "You're way too soft on her."
"You're way too hard on her," I shot back.
I reached out and pinched her cheek.
"Mmfh—?!" she yelped around the lollipop. "Ow! What the hell?!"
"That's for treating Tohka like a lab rat," I said smirking.
She slapped my hand away, face puffed. "You can't pinch your commander!"
"Then stop acting like one at home," I said. "You're my little sister first."
"Tch..." she clicked her tongue, but she didn't press the argument further. Instead, she reached into her pocket and pulled out something small.
She dropped it into my hand.
An earpiece.
I stared at it. "Kotori."
"This is for emergencies," she said. "If a Spirit appears, if AST moves in, if something goes wrong, I want you to be able to talk to Fraxinus immediately."
"And if you want to whisper instructions in my ear for more stupid plans," I said.
"If I wanted to, I could," she said. "That's all I'm saying."
"That's not reassuring," I muttered.
"Too bad," she said. "Take it."
I slipped it into the pocket of my hoodie, next to my phone. It felt heavier than it actually was.
"I'm not doing your jealousy drills," I said. "If anything happens, it's on your side, not mine."
I crouched to put my shoes on. When I stood and put my hand on the doorknob, Kotori turned toward the stairs again.
"Oh, right," she said casually. "You also have a guest."
I paused. "Guest?"
She was already walking away. "Outside," she said. "Try not to scare them with your zombie face."
"Who?" I asked.
She didn't answer. She just waved a hand over her shoulder and went back upstairs.
I sighed, opened the door, and stepped out.
The bright sunlight forced my eyes to adjust and blink a Few times.
I look.
No one was in front of our house.
I looked left, then right.
Then my gaze slid to the house next door.
In front of the Spirit residence, a small figure stood stiffly in front of the door, like she was trying to blend in with it. She clutched a large stuffed bear and a rabbit puppet at her chest.
Yoshino...
She was in her familiar outfit, hood up, long sleeves, Yoshinon on her arm. The big bear I'd given her was hugged tight, almost acting like a shield. She kept glancing nervously at the door, then down at her shoes.
I walked over.
"Yoshino?" I called softly.
She jumped. The bear almost slipped, and she scrambled to hold it tighter.
"Sh-Shidou-san...!" she said, lifting her head.
"Morning," I said, stopping a step away so I didn't crowd her.
Her fingers sank into the fur of the bear. I could see her shoulders trembling a bit.
She closed her eyes for a second, took a tiny breath, and opened them.
"G-Good morning, Shidou-san!" she said.
Her greeting was Clear. A little shaky, but clear on the first try.
I smiled. "Nice job. That was perfect."
Her cheeks went pink. She ducked her head slightly, the hood casting a shadow over her eyes.
"Reine-san told me to practice," she murmured. "She said... if I can say it properly, talking will get easier."
"Looks like she was right," I said. "Did you come down alone?"
She shook her head. "No. Kotori-san invited me. I still have examinations, but she said I can come greet you and Tohka-san for a little while. Before I have to go back to the ship."
She squeezed the bear again when she said "ship."
"That helping?" I asked. "The bear."
Her grip tightened. "Mm," she hummed. "When I hold him, I don't feel as scared. I can sleep. And... speak. A little."
"Good," I said. "I'm glad he's doing his job."
A small, shy smile tugged at her lips.
The door in front of her clicked.
"Shidou, let's—"
Tohka stepped out, halfway through speaking, then froze when she saw us.
Or, more specifically, when she smelt the air and instantly locked her eyes on the bag in my hand.
"Sh-Shidou," she said, eyes widening. "Is that...?"
I lifted the bag slightly. "Yeah. Morning."
"You brought it again?!" she said, practically sparkling.
I pulled the bento out and held it out. "Same as yesterday. Chicken with sauce. Rice."
She took the box like it was a sacred treasure.
"You are truly a good person, Shidou!" she declared. "Wonderful! Amazing! Incredible!"
"Don't oversell it," I said. "It's just food. And at this rate, I'm going to have to start sneaking vegetables in there for your health."
She changed her mood instantly and narrowed her eyes at me. "If you try something suspicious like that, I'll know."
"You say that," I said, "but you forget everything as soon as you take the lid off."
"That's because what's inside is very good," she replied, as if that settled it.
Despite everything, I laughed under my breath. Seeing her this happy over a bento always made things feel a bit lighter.
Then Tohka finally seemed to realize there was another person standing beside me.
"Huh?" She blinked and focused on the small, hooded girl clutching a bear. "Y-Yoshino? You're here?"
Yoshino straightened slightly. "Y-yes," she said softly.
She looked at me, then at Tohka, and her fingers curled tighter into the bear's fur. She swallowed, clearly trying to repeat the earlier success.
"G-good... g-googmog—"
The words tangled and fell apart in her mouth.
Tohka tilted her head. "Goog... what?"
Yoshino's shoulders jumped up. She tried to hide behind the bear, only the hood visible.
Yoshinon stepped in quickly.
"That was good, Yoshino," It said. "You almost had it. Try again. Slowly this time."
She peeked over the bear at me. I gave her an encouraging nod. She inhaled, let it out, then turned to Tohka again.
"G-Good morning, Tohka-san," she said carefully.
This time it came out clean.
Tohka's face lit up. "Good morning, Yoshino!" she replied, smiling wide.
Yoshino sagged a little in relief, like just completing that line successfully took a weight off.
"You did great," I said. "Seriously."
"Th-thank you," she whispered.
Up close like this, hood framing her face, bear hugged close, she really did look... gentle. And cute.
"You look beautiful in that outfit," I said. "It really suits you."
Her blush deepened. She tightened her arms around the bear and ducked her head again.
Next to me, I felt Tohka go still.
"Beautiful..." she repeated under her breath, eyes flicking from Yoshino to me.
Right. That.
I turned to her. Tohka's lips were pressed together, eyebrows drawn, expression caught between jealousy and annoyance.
I realized in that moment that, yeah, she needed to hear it too.
"Yoshino's beautiful," I said. "And you're always beautiful too Tohka. I don't need to say it every single morning right?"
Her head snapped toward me.
"Wh—! Don't just—!" Her face went bright red. "Y-you can't say that so easily!"
"You're the one making that face," I said. "I figured you wanted to hear it for the millionth time."
"I... didn't," she muttered, looking away. "Idiot..."
But her shoulders relaxed. She hugged the bento closer, not in a possessive way now, but like she was embarrassed and needed something to hold.
I felt some redness on my ears as well but ignored it.
Yoshino watched us quietly, eyes big and somewhat awed.
"Um," she said after a moment. "I... really have to go back now. If I'm late, Reine-san will be upset."
"Yeah," I said. "Don't make her worry. You can come down again whenever they let you."
Yoshino's cheeks warmed again. She hugged the bear tight and bowed her head.
"Goodbye, Shidou-san, Tohka-san," she said. "Thank you."
She turned and hurried off down the street, heading toward wherever Ratatoskr's pickup point was.
We watched until she was out of sight.
Tohka looked down at the bento and grinned. "Today is definitely going to be a good day," she said.
"We'll see," I murmured.
"What?"
"Nothing," I said. "Let's go or we'll be late."
We started down the usual route to school, side by side.
For a bit, it was quiet. Students further ahead. Cars passing on the main road. Normal morning sounds.
Then I noticed Tohka fidgeting.
She tugged the front of her summer shirt, then the side, shifting her shoulders like something was off.
"Something wrong?" I asked.
"This uniform feels strange," she said, frowning. "Like there's nothing here."
She gestured vaguely across her chest.
I looked. Her shirt lay a little too flat. No lines where they should've been.
I see...
Tohka wasn't wearing a bra.
"Did you put on that other thing?" I asked. "The... underwear that isn't underpants."
She blinked. "The annoying one in the closet?"
"The bra," I said.
She crossed her arms. "I don't like that thing. It's confusing. And tight. And confusing."
"That's twice now," I said. "And you still have to wear it. Especially under this uniform."
She made an angry face. "Humans are so inconvenient."
"Mmm yeah we are," I said. "Come on. We're going back inside for a minute."
"Ughhh.... But We just left.." she complained, but she didn't fight as I turned us around.
Back in her room, she stomped to the closet, opened the top compartment, and pulled out the bra like it had personally offended her.
"Look at this," she said, holding it up. "Why does it have hooks? Why so many!?"
"Because someone somewhere decided suffering is fashion," I said. "Put it on behind the screen. Under your shirt remember."
"I know that," she muttered, cheeks puffing a little red.
She disappeared behind the folding screen. There was rustling, then more rustling, then the sound of something snapping wrong.
After a while:
"Shidou," she called.
"Yeah?"
"It's... wrong," she said. "And I can't see the back."
I sighed. "Okay. I'm coming around. Don't freak out."
"I w-won't," she said, suspiciously quickly.
I stepped around the side.
Her shirt was half-buttoned. The bra band was twisted and sitting too high. One strap was falling off her shoulder, the other was tangled.
There was also a lot of exposed skin.
My face heated, but I forced my eyes to stay focused on the problem area.
"Turn around," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
She did. "F-Fix it..." she said in a small voice.
"On it.." I muttered.
Carefully, I untwisted the band and slid it down to where it was supposed to sit. I straightened the straps on her shoulders, making sure they weren't twisted. Then I brought the ends of the band together and hooked them.
"There," I said blushing, stepping back. "Now it's actually on properly. Button your shirt."
She did, then rolled her shoulders and tugged at the front again.
"It still feels weird," she complained. "Like something's squeezing me."
"You'll get used to it," I said. "Humans do."
"Humans are weird," she repeated.
"Come on," I said. "We're seriously going to be late if we keep stopping."
This time, we made it all the way to the big crossing.
The light changed, and a crowd started moving across. Tohka and I fell into step with them.
Then:
"I'm gonna be late!"
A girl came sprinting down the sidewalk, toast clamped between her teeth, bag bouncing at her side. She was headed straight for me like I was a target.
I'd seen enough morning anime clichés at this point to recognize one in real life when I saw it.
"Nope Not today.." I muttered.
Just before she could crash into me, I tugged Tohka a step over and moved with her.
The girl shot through the space we'd just vacated, shoes skidding as she realized she'd missed.
She spun around, still half-running backward, and stared at me.
We made eye contact.
She blinked. Once. Twice.
For a second, she just stood there with toast in her mouth like her brain had frozen.
She snaps out of it and puts a finger on her chin. She made a pondering face, Then smashed her fist into her open palm as if she had an idea.
Then.... she turned around and started running toward me again.
"Here we go," I said under my breath.
As she reached us, she let out an exaggerated "Kyah!" and threw herself forward.
Her foot didn't actually catch anything. She just... dropped. Right in front of me.
Her skirt flipped up.
I jerked my gaze away immediately, but a flash of pale thigh and white panty still hit my eyes before I could stop it. My hands moved on reflex, unfortunately, catching her shoulders so she didn't hit the ground face-first.
"Ow..." she whimpered, adjusting her skirt with one hand.
She looks up at me.
"I can't get married anymore..." she added in a dramatic voice. "What should I do...?"
She stood slowly, stepping in close. Way too close. She grabbed my hoodie with one hand and, with the other, started tracing circles over my chest with a fingertip.
"You're going to take responsibility, right?" she said, looking up at me with gleaming eyes.
My face heated, but not in a pleasant way. This felt fake and awkward, not flattering.
Behind me, I could practically feel Tohka's jealousy spike. The air got heavier by a notch.
I looked down at the girl.
Up close, I could see the timing had been too exact. Her "trip" was controlled. Her glance to the side before falling, the way she'd repositioned herself—it all screamed "staged."
Fraxinus, I thought.
"You definitely did that on purpose," I said flatly.
Her eyes widened. "E-eh? No! I just tripped, I—"
"On flat ground, right in front of me, after you already missed me once," I said. "Sure pal."
Her mouth opened, then closed again.
I sighed. "Look, you're going to actually hurt yourself if you keep pulling stunts like that. Go to school normally idiot."
Before she could fire off another cheesy line, I reached up and flicked her forehead.
"Ow!" she yelped, grabbing it. "You didn't have to hit me!"
"That was the soft version," I said. "Now go or I'll give you another."
She narrowed her eyes, then stuck her tongue out and pulled down her lower eyelid at me in a childish face.
"Meanie," she muttered, and ran off down a different street.
I watched her go rolling my eyes.
You didn't drop it at all, did you, Kotori? I thought. Even after I said no.
"Shidou," Tohka said.
I turned.
She was glaring at me, bento clutched in one arm, free hand balled into a fist.
"That girl," she said. "She showed you under her skirt.... And then touched you."
"I know," I said. "And I didn't want that, in case that wasn't obvious."
"You still saw," she said, not letting it go.
"It was an accident Tohka." I said. "And it was embarrassing and weird. I don't like that kind of thing with people I don't know."
She kept staring, trying to see if I was lying.
"I'm serious," I said. "If anything, I'm more annoyed than anything else. It felt like some forced scene from a bad anime."
Her expression shifted slightly at that. Less sharp, more uncertain.
"Alright... I trust you Shidou."
She looks at me deeply and mumbles something.
I nodded at her and smiled.
We started walking again. The silence this time was heavier.
After a few minutes, when her shoulders had dropped a little, I spoke again, quieter.
"Don't get mad over every random girl that pops out of nowhere," I said. "I'm not going anywhere. I care about you a lot Tohka."
She stumbled for half a step and then caught herself, almost dropping the bento.
She glared at me with a red face.
"I-Idiot..." she says lowly.
"It's the truth," I said with warmth in my cheeks. "Whether I say it or not."
She muttered something under her breath that sounded like a mix of "dummy" "muuu" and something softer, then walked a little closer to me.
We kept going.
Raizen's gate came into view. I checked my phone. 8:20. Ten minutes until homeroom.
We passed through the gate.
"Itsuka-senpai!"
I stopped. Of course.
A first-year girl stood a few steps inside, clutching a small envelope with a heart seal on it. Her cheeks were flushed, and her hands were shaking a little. Behind her, two other first-years pretended to be talking while obviously watching us.
She bowed deeply, thrusting the envelope out.
"I–I've always liked you!" she blurted. "Please go out with me!"
If I hadn't just lived through the toast girl performance, I might have believed it.
Might have.
I looked at the envelope. At her face. At the way her friends shifted behind her.
Then I took the letter for a second, feeling the paper between my fingers, and gently pushed it back into her hands.
"I'm sorry," I said. "I can't answer your expectations."
Her eyes filled with instant tears.
"I'm sorry!" she said, voice breaking. "I shouldn't have bothered you—!"
She bowed again and ran off, her friends chasing after her, whispering frantically.
I watched them go, a tired knot forming between my brows.
Was that Fraxinus as well..?
I looked back at Tohka who had furrowed brows.
"What did she want?" Tohka asked.
"Nothing important," I said. "Just a misunderstanding."
She gave me a suspicious look but let it go.
We changed into indoor shoes and headed to our classroom.
Inside, the usual pre-homeroom noise filled the room. People talked in small groups. Some crammed last-minute homework.
Tonomachi was at the board.
He'd drawn a big umbrella and, inside it, written:
Shidou ＋ Tohka
He turned when he heard us and grinned.
"Yo, Itsuka," he said. "Coming in with Yatogami again? You two are basically glued together now."
"Erase that," I said. "You're not in elementary school."
"Tohka-chan, look," he said, pointing at the umbrella. "People are already talking, you know. Walk to school together too much and—"
Tohka stepped closer and stared at the drawing. "An umbrella...?" she said. "Is there some rule about coming to school together and umbrellas?"
Tonomachi froze. "N-no, no rule!" he said quickly, grabbing the eraser. "It's just a dumb doodle! Don't worry about it!"
He scrubbed the board so fast chalk dust flew off in little clouds.
"You really don't have anything better to do, huh," I said.
He spun on me, clutching the eraser like a weapon. "Easy for you to say, Mr. Surrounded-By-Girls," he complained. "Some of us would kill for even one walk to school like that!"
"Ugh.. Don't drag me into your strange fantasies," I roll my eyes.
"You're a riajuu, that's what you are," he said. "Guys like you are destined to explode!"
"Explode?" Tohka repeated, alarmed.
"It's just an expression," I started.
She grabbed my sleeve. "Shidou is going to explode?!"
"No," I said. "I'm not going to explode."
She didn't seem reassured.
"If Shidou explodes, I'll be very sad," Tohka said seriously. "Please do something so he doesn't."
Tonomachi stared at her. Then at me. Then back at her. His brain seemed to short out for a second.
"I... I need to go cool off," he said faintly. "Bathroom. Yeah."
He stumbled out of the room like his soul had been knocked loose. He muttered about shitty "Nice guys" on his way out.
I sighed and walked to my seat. "Don't mind him," I said to Tohka. "He lives in his own world."
"He is strange," she agreed.
I sat down. On my left, Origami sat in her usual spot, expressionless, looking straight ahead.
White hair. Flat expression. The same as always.
But I couldn't look at her the same way anymore.
Watch that white-haired girl... something bad's likely going to happen to her.
That line from Sans sat there in the back of my mind, heavy. Combine that with the dark visitor warning, and my nerves were always half-on edge now.
I turned slightly. "Morning, Origami," I said.
Her eyes flicked to me immediately. "Morning, Shidou," she said.
She looked at me for a second longer than normal. Her gaze lingered on my face, on the shadows under my eyes.
"You look tired," she said flatly.
"...Everybody keeps saying that," I muttered.
"How many hours did you sleep?" she asked.
I tried the usual dodge. "Enough."
Her eyes narrowed a fraction. For Origami, that was a big deal.
"...Two, maybe three," I admitted finally.
"That is not enough," she said. "You should go to the nurse's office."
"It's almost homeroom," I said. "I'll live."
"I'll go with you," she said immediately.
I blinked. "What?"
"To the nurse's office," she repeated. "You will sleep. I will sit next to you and make sure you rest."
I blink.
"...So you're going to watch me sleep," I said. "That's somehow more concerning than not going."
"That is not concerning," she said calmly. "That is efficient."
My face warmed a little. "I'm not a patient you have to guard you know."
"You are important," she said. "If you collapse, it would be bad"
"You can't just call someone 'important' with that expression," I muttered.
"It is a fact," she said.
This girl...
Even so, under the flat tone, something softened in her eyes when she looked at me. Concern, in Origami's weird, quiet way.
"You okay?" I asked. "Since the last battle. Any weird stuff happen? Anything giving you trouble?"
"No abnormal events," she said. "Routine patrols only. Though..."
"Though?" I repeated.
She glanced at my hoodie, then back to my face. "You have been acting slightly differently lately. More direct."
"...Is that bad?" I asked.
"Not bad," she said. "Just... noticeable."
I rubbed the back of my neck. "Maybe I just got tired of dancing around everything."
Between Sans's warnings, the Spirits, Ratatoskr, AST... pretending things were "normal" felt pointless.
Origami's eyes shifted past me for a moment. "Tohka is watching us," she said.
I glanced over my shoulder.
Tohka had her chin in her hand, staring at us with a mix of suspicion and confusion. Her brows were pinched, and her lips were pressed together.
Can't blame her. Origami had tried to kill her more than once. Now we were talking calmly, and Origami was offering to drag me to the nurse's office.
Origami looked back at me. "You came to school together with Yatogami Tohka," she said.
"Yeah," I said. "She lives next door now. It'd be weirder if we didn't come together."
Origami turned her head to look at Tohka directly. "You two seem close..." she said.
Tohka straightened, frowning. "D-do you have a problem with that?" she asked.
Origami held her gaze for a heartbeat.
"...No," she said.
I could see a microscopic hint of annoyance on Origami's face.
Tohka huffed and turned away, crossing her arms. "Then don't say it like that," she muttered.
Origami looked back at me. For a moment, something like a question passed through her eyes. She opened her mouth, then closed it and let out a small breath.
"I still think you should go to the nurse's office," she said. "You look like you could fall asleep at any time."
"I'll manage," I said. "If I pass out, you get to say 'I told you so.'"
"I don't want to say that.." she replied dryly.
The PA chime rang before I could respond.
Conversations died down. People went back to their seats properly. Tohka sat up straighter. Tonomachi drifted back in, looking emotionally bruised.
Tama-chan walked in with her usual stack of papers and a bright smile.
"Good morning, everyone~!" she sang out. "Let's start homeroom, okay?"
She went through attendance, then some announcements about club events, test schedules, the usual.
Then she clapped her hands together.
"Oh, right, right," she said. "I almost forgot. We have a transfer student joining us today."
The room buzzed at once.
"A transfer? Again?"
"Is it another foreigner?"
"Boy or girl?"
Tohka tensed behind me. On my left, Origami's body posture shifted subtly. She sat even straighter.
My own chest tightened, for a different reason.
Another transfer, right after Tohka, I thought. And Sans's "dark visitor" warning on top of that...
My palms felt a little damp.
"Okay then," Tama-chan said, smiling toward the door. "Come in, please~"
The classroom door slid open.
A girl stepped through.
Her movement was calm, unhurried. She wore the Raizen uniform, but over it she had a dark, long-sleeved jacket that wasn't season-appropriate. Black stockings covered her legs down to her shoes.
Her hair was long and jet black, reaching past her waist in waves. The bangs on the left side of her face were thick enough to completely hide her left eye.
Only her right eye was visible.
Ruby Red.
Here eyes were a Deep, steady crimson that moved slowly across the room, taking everything in.
The buzz of conversation faded on its own. People watched her, whispering softer now.
She walked to the front, next to the teacher's desk.
"Tokisaki-san," Tama-chan said. "Would you write your name on the board for everyone?"
"Of course," the girl said politely.
She picked up a piece of chalk and wrote in neat, practiced strokes:
'Tokisaki Kurumi'
Then she turned back to face the class, setting the chalk down carefully.
She placed a hand lightly against her chest and bowed her head just a little.
"My name is Tokisaki Kurumi," she said.
Her voice was gentle. Polite. If you just listened to that, she sounded like a perfectly normal transfer student.
But the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
Her smile was soft. Her posture was relaxed. Everything about her presentation was neat.
And yet, something was wrong.
It was in the way that red eye moved, the way the air seemed to get heavier around the edges, the way my instincts screamed danger even though she was just standing there.
Tama-chan asked her another question. "Well, Tokisaki-san, anything else you'd like to say to the class?"
Kurumi tilted her head slightly, as if she'd been waiting for that question.
"Yes," she said.
She smiled wider. It should've made her look beautiful. Instead, it somehow made that strange feeling much worse.
"My name is Tokisaki Kurumi," she repeated. "And I am..."
The room felt suddenly too quiet.
"...a Spirit."
My heart slammed once, hard.
The warning replayed in my mind.
A dark visitor is coming.
The words lined up in my head with the girl smiling at the front of our classroom.
So this is her, I thought, throat suddenly dry.
Tokisaki Kurumi...
The Dark visitor