Chapter 25: Origins and Divergences
She naturally understood I was being sarcastic and responded with an incredulous expression.
“What? Isn’t it? For me, it’s really quite a big trouble, being liked by girls… and all of them with that kind of dangerous…”
Had Lianbing and the others retained their original genders in that other world?
Oh ho, if that’s the case, it’s like a development from “Maria-sama ga Miteru,” isn’t it?
Heh, to be honest, it’s quite a pleasant sight. With me, a superfluous man, gone, the stories would all gain the fragrance of lily flowers, masking the smell of blood.
Ahem, wait. I mustn’t negate myself. It would be terrible if a twisted thought like ‘I wish I were a woman’ were to arise.
“Do you think it’s not a big trouble for me? Since you know how dangerous ‘they’ are, of course I…”
“No! If even their personalities are the same!”
Before I could finish, Xiao Ai directly interrupted me, her eyes widening as if she had realized something terrifying. She looked at me like I was a monster and said.
“You, you’re actually… still alive?”
I rolled my eyes and answered without thinking.
“I’m truly sorry, I’ve actually died once already, and been on the brink of death several times. Incidentally, I was hospitalized for several months.”
What’s there to ask about this?
You’ve experienced it before, haven’t you?
“What—you’ve died before! Could you be a ghost or something! Is it because of grudges that you possess me or something…”
“You have quite a rich imagination, but unfortunately, I have a body. I’ve just become a Zombie.”
Speaking of which, it suddenly occurred to me: why doesn’t Xiao Ai know that I died once?
If she is truly my other self, then she should have experienced everything I’ve experienced.
This means that she should also be a Zombie right now…
“Zombie… Are you joking? Is it the latest meme? Or are you talking about a movie plot?”
This time, it was I who wore a bewildered expression.
Because I didn’t get the answer I expected.
SF Light Novel
I thought she would shrug and say, “Ho, is that so? It’s better than being a walking skeleton,” just like I would. Instead, she looked at me blankly and retorted.
This retort—
A difference has finally arisen, or rather, a ‘divergence point.’
She no longer reacted as one would naturally expect but seemed completely unaware. In other words, she genuinely didn’t know about Zombies and thought I was joking.
How could that be?!
If that’s really the case…
The butterfly effect.
That word flashed through my mind.
Even tiny changes can bring about completely opposite results. She is clearly a living example of the butterfly effect.
I sorted out my thoughts and then supported my forehead, gesturing towards her with my palm.
“Wait, let me ask you something first. When you stopped me from calling the police after coming out of the bathroom, you first proposed the possibility of you transmigrating from a parallel world. But why did you deny my existence after entering the room? It can’t be that you were convinced just by seeing the room was the same.”
“What makes you think I’m ‘fake’?”
“Well, it’s actually because I saw the scar on your abdomen. That’s why I became suspicious. I don’t have such a scar, and I’ve never been so seriously injured.”
“You’re saying you haven’t been injured in the abdomen? And your intestines didn’t fall out?”
“Mmm, I didn’t… Wait, what do you mean your intestines fell out? That’s basically death! And you just said you ‘died once’? What about becoming a Zombie? … It… are you telling the truth…? After all, I don’t joke around…”
As she said this, Xiao Ai’s gaze became increasingly terrified.
Perhaps I had the same expression right now.
While the similarity in our experiences was terrifying, what was more terrifying was that experiences that should have been the same had become completely different.
It felt like “my own life was being denied.”
()_SF Light Novel
Which one is the ‘correct development’? Which one is the ‘main storyline’? Which version of myself is the ‘real’ one?
If it were me, I couldn’t help but think that way. Of course, Xiao Ai would also think the same.
I remained silent, lost in thought.
After all the things I’ve been through, how could I not be injured?
Did this tiny change of her being a ‘woman’ cause everything to become different?
Impossible!
No matter how much of a butterfly effect there is, it’s impossible!
No matter how much one tries to avoid it, it’s impossible to emerge completely unscathed from being caught up in such a level of anomalous events. Even as a woman’s privilege, this is too exaggerated.
But she has no reason to lie to me, which means this is a foregone conclusion.
Then, what is the ‘divergence point’ that created this difference… Where did the ‘butterfly’ playfully flap its wings?
Not being injured means she didn’t experience the Ghoul incident, nor the serial killer incident, and not even taking Lianbing out of the graveyard… Then even further back… Could it be…
Perhaps… the ‘beginning’?
Thinking of this, I spoke directly.
“Then, I have one more question. Can you see the ‘Title’ now? Or… have you ever fainted in Beishan Park?”
“‘Title’? Names and titles? Are you talking about an online game? As for fainting in the park… I haven’t! Although after evening study sessions, I sometimes sit on a park bench, enjoy a cup of coffee, listen to music, and savor a moment of peace, I’ve never fallen asleep in the park.”
“Not even once? Even if you were knocked out. Did you never lose consciousness in the park?”
“What do you mean, knocked out? Was someone throwing things? Anyway, I haven’t lost consciousness in the park, not even once.”
… Ha.
As expected. I’ve finally found the biggest difference between her and me.
She might indeed be another me from a parallel world, but the experiences she’s had are different from mine…
It’s because she’s the me who didn’t obtain the Yata no Kagami!
What I once yearned for most has been realized in her!
My originally ordinary life began to change from being hit in the head by the Yata no Kagami. If this hadn’t happened, Lianbing wouldn’t have noticed me, and the subsequent events wouldn’t have occurred.
In other words, Xiao Ai, who didn’t obtain the Yata no Kagami, hasn’t experienced any anomalous events, so she wouldn’t be injured. Perhaps for her, transmigrating to this world is the first anomalous event.
“I didn’t expect it to be… like this… You are similar to me, yet completely different.”
If the me from three months ago met Xiao Ai, we would probably be perfectly synchronized.
However, the experiences of the past few months have been infinitely more ‘exciting’ than my entire life before. It’s impossible for me, who has been caught up in it, to remain unchanged.
But my thoughts can still synchronize with hers. Does this mean I haven’t changed much from before?
-.- I don’t know whether to be happy or sad. Is this considered no progress?
Xiao Ai looked at me, scratching my head, and raised an eyebrow.
“Have you figured something out?”
“Yeah, I think so. I’ve realized how lucky you are, and how unfortunate I am.”
“Huh?! Please! I’ve transmigrated into your world now! Try transmigrating into my world!”
“I would welcome that…”
“Huh?!”
“I’m warning you in advance, you’ve arrived in a very dangerous world.”
“What…”
Let’s not tell her about those things for now.
Speaking of which, if she didn’t gain the ability to see true names, how did Xiao Ai come into contact with Lianbing and the others? Or perhaps the “them” Xiao Ai mentioned are someone else entirely…
Since our experiences have diverged so drastically from March onwards, I don’t know what she has been through.
“Speaking of which, you mentioned ‘them’ earlier too. Who are you referring to?”
“What do you mean? Shouldn’t you know it very well? It’s—it’s Lanhua, Jia Jia, Shi Yao, Meixiang, and Lin Qing… Those guys are really troublesome.”
Scratching her head like me, she complained and revealed their names.
As a result, I only knew Lanhua. However, I had heard of the other names; they were classmates I had heard of but didn’t know.
My brain whirred, and I matched the names Xiao Ai mentioned with the faces of my female classmates, reaching the following conclusion.
[Yin Shi Yao] is a [Witch], [Lin Qing] is a [Tree Demon], and [Mo Meixiang] is a [Magical Girl].
Jia Jia is not her real name but likely refers to the [Pureblood Vampire] in our class.
“Shi Yao mumbles every day about not having a boyfriend and always performs all sorts of strange divinations. Meixiang is like a little girl who hasn’t graduated from Chuunibyo, fantasizing about becoming a magical girl and calling me ‘senpai,’ even though her birthday is later than mine… The geophagic Jia Jia comes to me every day asking for blood, making me a bit anemic… Lin Qing, that airheaded idiot, can get lost in thought while walking and has almost been hit by a car several times. It’s too much!”
It seems her daily life wasn’t smooth sailing either. But unlike me, she encountered other anomalous events.
That’s right, in a class like that, one would eventually get caught up in strange things. Rather, it’s a miracle I managed to pass through one and a half years without noticing anything.
She probably never realized that the people around her were all ‘anomalies.’
Because in that aspect of being oblivious, she’s just like me.
But what bothers me even more… is the absence of Lianbing and Xue’s names. As expected, without the Yata no Kagami, I wouldn’t have crossed paths with them either…
It’s a little sad…
“Especially Lanhua. I see her everywhere I go. She’s incredibly obnoxious!”
“Just stalking…”
That’s still good. She hasn’t evolved into an advanced stalker yet.
You have no idea how annoying it is to be under surveillance twenty-four hours a day…
Speaking of which, she’s probably watching right now, isn’t she? Why hasn’t she sent a text message yet? Is she asleep?
“Now that things are mostly understood, let’s talk about… how to send you back, shall we?”
This is the most important matter.
