Kiana could sleep very well. Or perhaps the warmer climate of the Far East, compared to the frozen wastes of Siberia she'd always wandered, had instinctively lulled her into drowsiness.
To put it plainly, she slept through the entire afternoon.
The teacher didn't intervene. Teacher-student relationships in the Far East, outside of light novels, had never been particularly close. There certainly weren't any aging, iron-fisted spinster teachers around.
The dismissal bell rang. Probably because she hadn't yet formed the habit, Kiana was still asleep...
Shiraha rapped his knuckles on the desk. Kiana let out a soft, drowsy murmur. There was a crease mark on her cheek. Her sky-blue eyes were misted over with moisture, glistening. "Dad... I'll catch up..."
Then she met Shiraha's gaze. No exasperation. No impatience. Shiraha was simply waiting for her to wake up.
Kiana rubbed her eyes vigorously. "Oh. Class is starting, right? I'll head back to my seat now."
Mei had already said her goodbyes to her friends. Her shoulder bag slung diagonally, her face was expressionless. "School already ended."
She no longer disliked Kiana now... at least, not as much. After all, Mei had gone from initially speculating about what ulterior motives Kiana might harbor, to guessing when she'd wake up, to finally letting out a resigned laugh.
It had only taken Mei one afternoon to understand, Kiana was pure.
Kiana's eyes went wide. She was clearly somewhat flustered. Every student who'd tried sleeping in class for the first time was probably like this.
"It's fine. You couldn't understand the lessons anyway. Sleeping now just means making up for it at home later."
Shiraha was indifferent to this. Maybe Kiana was a genius. But a person whose future self would celebrate with unbridled joy over scoring 61 on a test, wanting everyone to know, calling her a genius was somewhat unlikely.
"Let's head to the club."
Shiraha mentally ran through his biology knowledge one more time. Mm. This should be enough to soothe Mobius-nee's anger.
If not... if not, he'd just blame Elysia-nee.
"Club?"
Kiana was even more dumbfounded. Didn't dismissal mean you could go home?
"Mm. A club is generally a group where people with shared interests gather. With the teacher's approval, they can apply for an activity room."
Yuna's answer was very textbook.
Kiana's sky-blue eyes instantly came alive.
As long as you shared an interest, and with the teacher's approval, you could apply for an activity room?
School was amazing. If she could form a club that lasted a lifetime, and then never graduate, wouldn't she never have to worry about housing for the rest of her life?
"Alright! I'm gonna create a club too!"
Kiana slapped the desk and shot to her feet.
That way, even if Dad made someone angry someday, she'd still have a place to stay.
Mei narrowed her eyes. "Is this a declaration of war?"
Kiana's expression was utterly sincere. "No. I genuinely want to find like-minded friends."
And then form a lifetime club.
Just kidding. They don't even have to be like-minded. Once the club is created, Kiana will figure out a way to kick those people out.
Mei stared at her silently.
"That'll have to wait until you're familiar with the school atmosphere." Shiraha waved a hand. "Come check out our Hokushin Ittō-ryū Youth Training Camp first."
He didn't know what Kiana was thinking. But for now, he didn't need to worry about her either.
Mei's expression eased somewhat. Right. No one said other people's interests had to match hers. If Kiana wanted to create a club, let her do it... At least this way, Kiana wouldn't poach her capable subordinates at school.
At this thought, her expression grew a touch more magnanimous. She even proactively extended her hand.
Yuna blinked, watching the young lady Mei lead Kiana by the hand up ahead. Preparing to follow, she glanced at Shiraha.
Tentatively, she extended her hand.
"Sigh. A child's feelings really are so pure."
Elysia's voice was drifting and wistful as she sighed. Always so unguarded... or guarded in ways far too clumsy.
Shiraha didn't mind. In this lifetime, he'd long since grown used to the act of holding hands. There were no particular feelings left about it anymore. Still, Yuna's hand was also very soft. All girls' hands were soft.
Raven was a little late today. She pushed the door open at her leisure. By now, she no longer feared that arriving a few minutes late would cause her to miss some crucial message. Life as a Far East high school girl was just that relaxed.
"Is she joining the club too?"
That girl, the one suspected to be the human vessel of the Second Herrscher. Kiana.
Raven narrowed her eyes. But at this point, she didn't yet harbor such deep hatred toward the Second Herrscher. At the very least, toward the Second Herrscher's human vessel, there was no obvious hatred.
Kiana shook her head. "I'll create my own club."
Then she settled contentedly off to the side. The activity room was very large. If she created her own club, she could also have an activity room this big. This would be her guaranteed fallback residence.
But there was still one problem. She lacked like-minded classmates.
At this thought, she instinctively looked toward Shiraha... Truthfully, she didn't know anyone else. In this unfamiliar environment, only the boy was familiar to her.
And Shiraha seemed so alone, in the club, in the classroom, always alone. This stirred her thoughts once more.
She'd heard Shiraha was also adopted. Hadn't even gone through the legal procedures yet. He was just like her, both living under the Raiden family's roof as dependents.
'Decided. Tonight, I'll go find Shiraha. He probably wants a room that truly belongs to him too.'
Of course, Shiraha had no idea what Kiana was thinking. He had, after a long absence, arrived in the Elysian Realm.
Looking at the familiar scenery around him, the Signet of Infinity flickered incessantly in the upper right corner of his vision. When it hit 100%, it fully integrated, but this time, the synchronization took a little longer.
"My, my. Look who's finally here."
"It's the successor of Origin—Shiraha-oniisan~"
Mobius drew out her voice.
"Mm. I've been rather busy lately. Couldn't even find the time to come see Mobius-nee."
Shiraha paused, then added, "But I've been studying earnestly during this time. Over this past year, I've slowly come to understand the contents of that book as well."
After all, he was just a beginner. Mobius hadn't crammed anything too deep into it. Most of it was the sort of material that just required rote memorization.
Mobius let out a soft tsk. When the child was this well-behaved, she found it much harder to be so unreasonably petulant.
"Fine, fine. Shiraha-oniisan's been working hard all along. If I can't produce some results, it'll make me look rather indolent."
Mobius sighed, then suddenly leaned in close. "If you perform well today, if you make your sister happy, then today, your sister might just have a surprise for you."
Yes.
The Stigmata.
God damn it. She'd finally, based on that mountain of data, figured out Shiraha's situation.
There was no Stigmata on Shiraha's body. But guided by the power of Origin, Mobius had finally managed to piece together a viable method.
Shiraha blinked. He looked at Mobius's pretty, dimpled little face. After a moment's thought, he rose onto his tiptoes and planted a kiss on Mobius-nee.
Mobius: ....
?
Mobius's little brain spun into overdrive. What was that supposed to mean? You call this "performing well"? Who taught you to act like this?!
She drew a deep breath. "...Did Elysia teach you this?"
Her expression stiffened for a moment. First, the realization of why Shiraha might have done this. Second, the realization of what the Elysia outside was up to.
Shiraha blinked again, then nodded solemnly.