Sakura had many artifacts. World Serpent had, to some degree, preserved relics of the Previous Era's Flame-Chasers, stored in various corners of the Elysian Realm. Some were kept as tactical references, others purely as mementos.
As for why Grey Serpent had put these things into the Realm... Shiraha couldn't be bothered to think about it.
Anyway, Grey Serpent was fairly respectful toward the Flame-Chasers. When Sakura died, he'd even made a point of visiting her grave.
"Then let me tell you about Rin and myself. When you find Rin in the future, it might prove useful."
Sakura's patience was boundless.
It was rather embarrassing, really. No one had ever actually told Sakura the specifics of what had happened with Rin. The point in time when she'd left her memory body in the Realm was somewhat early so early that many things hadn't yet occurred, and naturally, her data had never been updated afterward.
"Mm..." Shiraha pondered for a moment, looking rather tangled. "Of course, Nee-chan."
But Sakura still didn't notice such obvious hesitation. Shiraha wondered, was Sakura deliberately ignoring it, or was she genuinely too emotionally stirred to notice?
If it was the latter, he really had to consider the possibility: Sakura, overwhelmed and muddled, had been tricked again when she'd gone to find Aponia earlier.
Sigh. Sakura. Sigh. Useless older sister.
Shiraha sighed inwardly, his face betraying nothing. He sat obediently off to the side, ready to listen to the story.
What Sakura recounted were mostly small, everyday matters. But these small matters filled in the finer details of life in the Previous Era all the more.
Good. The "World's Number One Killer Completion Plan" was still underway.
After a long while, Sakura slowly began to notice the patiently attentive expression on Shiraha's face and suddenly felt rather embarrassed. She wasn't the thick-skinned type.
"Sorry." She lowered her eyes. "I talked too much."
Shiraha shook his head. "It's fine. Teacher's the same way. In her words, memories inherently hold this kind of charm."
He paused, then added, "And Sakura-senpai's past... is very compelling."
Sakura smiled helplessly and rose.
"Was there anything else you came to me for?"
If not, she was ready to keep reminiscing.
Sakura wasn't much of a talker. But if simply recalling the past could give Rin the chance to blend into this new era and live happily, then she believed she could make her words very, very dense.
Shiraha hurriedly straightened up. "Actually, I came to study under you, Nee-chan."
Sakura froze for a long moment, her ears visibly twitching. "Study my arts? Isn't what Elysia teaches you enough?"
Actually, it was enough. If possible, Shiraha really would like to learn Nee-chan's arts.
But Elysia-nee, without holding his hand, couldn't hold a weapon. And if Nee-chan was holding his hand, she couldn't spar with him.
In the end, Nee-chan could only teach theory, or guide him hand-over-hand. That was good too, of course, but... Shiraha could absolutely have both. This wasn't a multiple-choice question.
Sakura hesitated. "My arts may not be as pleasing to the eye as Elysia's."
Shiraha didn't care at all. "It's fine, Nee-chan. Teacher's current condition isn't good. Her teaching is also very... more 'felt' than 'taught.'"
Sakura was still somewhat reluctant.
"Are you certain?"
She didn't really want to teach Shiraha. Saying he'd inherit her legacy had purely been to fob off Mobius.
What if, because the training was too bitter and exhausting, this child grew somewhat afraid of her and stopped coming to find her? What then, if something went wrong with Rin's matter?
Shiraha lifted his head. "On this point alone, I am absolutely certain."
"Nee-chan doesn't need to go easy on me. I can endure hardship. Actually, before I met Teacher, I lived in an orphanage the whole time."
Oh. An orphan. Then his ability to endure hardship could be trusted a little more.
Sakura asked once more. "Are you sure?"
"Shiraha. If you want to study under me, you'll have to put in at least twice the effort of an ordinary person."
She raised a hand, stopping Shiraha's impulse to speak.
"Don't rush. Listen to me. You're well aware by what means you come to the Elysian Realm. It's very difficult for you to form muscle memory. No matter how hard you train, you'll only have mental memory, it won't feed back into your physical body."
"So when you return to reality, you'll have to keep training. But the mental exhaustion from before won't fade."
"You'll have to put in far more than double, maybe even multiple times, the effort of an ordinary person before you can possibly fully internalize my arts."
Sakura wasn't one to boast. But when facing a child, there was truly no need for modesty.
If possible, she'd prefer Shiraha to recognize the difficulty and back down.
Shiraha paused. That did sound rather bitter and exhausting...
"Sakura-nee, why not give it a try first." He lifted his head, his gaze unwavering. "I'm a Stigmata bearer. In terms of the mental and spiritual, I'm already different from ordinary people."
Try first. If it doesn't work, switch methods. This is reality. Regret after the fact is also allowed.
It was just that, after rejecting the shortcut of Origin, Shiraha felt he now had to strive for perfection in many areas.
These skills, ones he could collect and learn throughout the story, it would be best not to miss a single one.
Sakura's expression grew even more troubled. Why wouldn't this child recognize the difficulty and back down?
"Then let's begin."
She sighed.
Try it first. Turn up the intensity. If he can't take it, the child will back off on his own. Then, when the time comes, I'll say a few kind words, it shouldn't affect anything.
"Shiraha. Shiraha. Stop playing. Time to go home."
Mei gently rapped her knuckles on the desk. But Shiraha didn't respond. She fumbled for the helmet's power button.
Gaming really was quite addictive. There was just one thing Mei could never figure out, why did Shiraha play games every day and still get such good grades?
It had to be because she supervised his gaming time every day! It had to be!
With a click, the Shiraha inside the Realm was instantly disconnected.
Sakura's expression, which had just begun to show a trace of gratification at the child's decent talent, froze solid. Then, her shoulders slowly sagged. Her ears drooped.
It's over. This kid's going to avoid me from now on, isn't he?
...Uu.
Back in the clubroom, Shiraha's expression went blank for a split second. Then he looked at Mei-nee beside him, who wore an expression that said "what am I going to do with you." He blinked, and his smile returned.
"Lost track of time today. Sorry, Mei-nee."
He smiled, clearly not meaning the apology in the slightest but Mei didn't mind these things.
"Time to go home, everyone."
Mei waved her little hand and declared today's club activities over.
Raven narrowed her eyes. Something felt off. This situation, being forcibly logged off ah, hell. Don't tell me I'm going to have to play messenger again?
But school was out. A Far East high school girl had to go home too.
It was just a little regrettable. She'd advanced a grade this year and was already a second-year in high school. Soon she'd be a third-year... Raven suddenly froze. Knowing Grey Serpent's personality, he probably wouldn't let her graduate.
And Shiraha and Mei were fifth graders this year, moving to sixth in half a year. If she couldn't find someone to replace her, she'd have to repeat: three years of middle school, three years of high school... six whole years.
Hopefully Grey Serpent had a better plan.
Back home. As expected, Grey Serpent was already there.
Grey Serpent was brief and to the point. "I'll go out to pick up the delivery in the early hours. Remember to bring it over tomorrow."
"And this letter for Shiraha."
Grey Serpent didn't know the contents of the letter. But on the Grey Serpent network, this was the first time he'd ever seen Sakura wear such a pitiful expression.
Wasn't Shiraha very well-behaved? How could he have made Sakura this frantic?