Chapter 35: The Guardians Are in Action
“Is there really a need to worry about something like that?”
Arms crossed, Kyoumi tilted her head.
Her nonchalant attitude drew Tohka’s gaze.
“…Eh?”
“I’m saying, do you really have to agonize over this? We spirits keep repeating the cycle of manifesting and vanishing. The reason we’re still standing here is simply because we want to live, right?”
“Giving up halfway is the real way to accomplish nothing.”
“At a time like this…?”
“Haven’t you already experienced how wonderful the world is? Has kinako bread stopped being delicious? Or are you dissatisfied with Shidou?”
“But I—”
“There’s no right or wrong in the struggle to survive. Besides, once the sealing is complete and you entrust your spirit power to Shidou, you won’t disappear either. It’s the you who causes spacequakes that vanishes. What remains is Tohka the human.”
The one who should disappear is the spirit Tohka. What does that have to do with the me Tohka?
“……”
Tohka’s eyes widened.
She turned back, looking as if she had never once considered that idea.
“Is that how it works… Shidou?”
“Yes, Kyoumi’s right! If appearing causes spacequakes, then you just have to stay here and not go back!”
Shidou Itsuka swallowed hard, trying to calm his wildly beating heart.
Kotori had said it before: spirits are pulled from another world into this one, and the shockwave from that creates spacequakes.
Since Tohka was being forcibly dragged here, made to appear and then disappear, repeatedly triggering spacequakes—if she simply stayed here from the start, that would solve it!
…Wait… forcibly…?
Tohka’s appearance this time hadn’t caused a spacequake.
True, the spacequake had been triggered by Kyoumi… but Tohka, who appeared at the school building, had done so silently, just like when she vanished.
No explosion, no dramatic noise.
「Just a guess, but my fellow spirit—the one you call Tohka—probably had the same 【I want to come over】 mindset as me last time she vanished. Plus I was hiding back then, so after the JGSDF finished tangling with her, she likely didn’t know I had taken the boy. If she appeared again, it would only be here.」
Because this time she came of her own will, could she limit the duration in advance or avoid triggering a spacequake?
Shidou wasn’t the analytical type.
For something like this, he should rely on someone with professional knowledge.
If he got the chance later, he’d ask the analyst aboard Fraxinus, Reine Murasame, to confirm…
“But if I stay here, something unexpected might still happen…”
“We’ll think about those things when they actually happen!!!”
He wasn’t the type to overthink the future anyway, so Shidou Itsuka answered quickly.
Right now, he only needed to face the girl in front of him.
He only wanted to preserve that happy smile.
“…Can I really… stay in this world?”
“Of course!”
“Can I really keep living?”
“Absolutely!!!”
“The only people who would say that to me are you guys… The AST aside, most other humans would never allow something dangerous like me to exist in their world…”
“Who cares about those guys?! The AST? Other humans? If they try to deny you, then I’ll surpass them! I’ll affirm you even more!”
Shidou shouted at the top of his lungs and extended his hand toward the girl.
Tohka’s shoulders trembled slightly.
“Take my hand. Just do that for now! Whatever comes later, we’ll face it together!”
“……” Kotori Itsuka’s brow twitched at those words.
It wasn’t jealousy or dissatisfaction with the boy. The girl trusted her brother completely.
It was just…
「Kotori… Kyoumi’s affection toward Shidou has dropped…」
Reine’s report reached her ear.
…Her affection dropped?
At a time like this… why?
The girl’s gaze was drawn to the purple-haired spirit.
Kyoumi stood with her back to the setting sun, and for a moment Kotori could only see the casual curve of her mouth, not her full expression.
She had just been speaking in favor of Tohka staying in this world, yet now the girl kept her distance from her fellow spirit.
Even though there was no chance of sealing Kyoumi this time either, Kotori—who had already begun to view her more favorably—wanted to maintain at least a certain level of friendliness.
Maybe next time they could even try a date…
“What’s going on…”
“Phew… You were right, Origami.”
Ryoko Kusakabe exhaled.
The team had quietly dispersed, taking concealed positions and turning the park on the hill into a massive hunting ground.
“While checking the moved buildings, we found faint spirit power residue inside.
There really is an organization trying to negotiate with spirits… These people’s heads really aren’t normal.”
“…Identity match rate confirmed at 97.8%. Can essentially be identified as the spirit Beast.”
Origami Tobiichi stated coolly, but the one who triggered this spacequake wasn’t the main target.
The girl’s gaze was fixed on a certain boy.
“…Yeah, yeah. And there’s a 98.5% match for Princess too. Plus… the spirit power fluctuations aren’t just from those two. That girl over there has significant spirit power readings as well. Analysis isn’t complete yet, but she’s probably another spirit. Spare me—are spirits forming tour groups now?”
“You think if I fired one shot right now, the whole of Tenguu City would sink twenty meters?”
“But… this is an opportunity…”
“You actually want to shoot?”
“Based on past manifestation analysis reports, Beast’s Divine Raiment has very low defensive power, and Princess isn’t wearing hers right now. Judgment: CCC can kill them.”
“Let me remind you, that’s only theoretical. In our unit, the only one who can pull off a sniper shot at this distance is you—and only if your body isn’t suffering from overexertion.”
“My accuracy doesn’t guarantee a kill on either one. And the others… No, just for now—Origami, can you even hold a gun steady?”
Origami Tobiichi looked at her slightly trembling arms and didn’t reply.
“Then you should be able to guess the consequences of attacking rashly.”
“But…”
“No buts. We’re here not to wipe out three spirits in one go. Even a single Beast was enough for the higher-ups to tell the promised reinforcements to scram. You know that, right?”
“……”
“Let’s trust your little boyfriend for now. Looks like we misjudged the last rescue operation and ended up ruining his plans.”
“But I didn’t know Shidou had joined some organization.”
“Before you tried to save him, he didn’t know you were AST either.”
“…Spirits are dangerous.”
She said it aloud, yet Origami Tobiichi’s gaze fell on the girl with the vivid red ponytail.
Shidou Itsuka was a very special existence to her, so she had investigated his relationships long ago.
…That girl… Shidou’s sister, Kotori Itsuka.
If she was a spirit too, how had she lived in human society until now… And Shidou… how long had he been doing this?
She couldn’t tell…
“If we attack them, it’ll only make things more dangerous. Listen up, Origami—stand by and observe. We still can’t tell what he’s trying to do. If we act rashly and bring disaster to the city, I might not be able to protect you next time.”
“…Just trust him for now, Origami.”
“The organization behind him has spatial transfer technology. His life shouldn’t be in danger.”
“But if we interfere first, that might change.”