Chapter 68: Only the Cruelest Answers Can Be Obtained
Three days later.
I sat on the roof of Li Nai’s house, thinking quietly…
Cough, not at all.
Actually, I was just preparing to go to Japan, so I had a short period of rest.
To reawaken Xiao An, I need to go to the Shrine of Pure World Glazed Tile located in Kyoto. Before that, I need to get a passport and such.
While it feels a bit ridiculous to be talking about this at this point, it’s the reality. Just because this world is virtual doesn’t mean I can do whatever I please.
Originally, I thought Ruanruan would definitely do her best to prevent us from leaving the country, but there were no maids chasing us, nor were there any other forms of pressure applied to us.
Has Ruanruan completely given up?
What is Lan accumulating Ruanruan’s words about… I’m so curious, but Lan doesn’t seem to be preparing to tell me about it.
But once this matter is settled, I can leave this world.
After living in this Mirror World for so long, I can finally go back…
Although, in the real world, only about three weeks have passed since I died.
The inference I made before was correct. Nana… The Principal said that the flow of time in this Spiritual World is different from the real world.
And in this world, two to three years have already passed.
The main reason for this difference is the triple Magic Circle the Principal drew earlier to place the Yata no Kagami in my spirit.
One of the Magic Circles’ effects was “Thought Acceleration.”
It was precisely the ability granted by this Magic Circle that allowed me to survive multiple times in the dangerous cracks.
To put it bluntly, Thought Acceleration is actually the acceleration of the spirit, and this Mirror World is equivalent to a Spiritual World. Therefore, it can be said that “this world is always in an accelerated state.”
This is also why I cannot use Thought Acceleration. It’s already accelerating. If I were to accelerate further on that foundation, it would put too much strain on the spirit.
Even though my Spiritual Power is already very strong, it is still not enough to support such a massive expenditure.
If I had understood this from the beginning, I would have understood the truth of this world sooner.
Well, so what if I had known? The outcome would not have changed… Because even if I were to do it again, I would have made the same choice.
A blind fool. What a fitting title for me, heh.
“Juncheng.”
A voice called out from behind. I turned around to see her climbing out of the attic onto the roof.
“Oh… Um, Zi’ai.”
“If you’re not used to it, you can keep calling me Kū. I don’t mind.”
“No, Kū is an abbreviation for ‘Kūku Ranran’ (empty emptiness), right? Since you now have a name, it would be inappropriate to continue using that title.”
I turned back and gazed at the starry sky above, saying.
“It feels like it’s been a long time since we’ve talked like this.”
F, it also feels strange to talk openly like this. After all, before, we could communicate just by thinking it in our minds.
“If you wish, after leaving this world, I can return to your body again.”
Zi’ai came to my side and sat down with her knees hugged close, saying.
“Besides, I don’t have a body originally…”
“Huh? But the Zi’ai in the real world has a body, right? That body is…”
“That body is the divine body of Amaterasu. I just borrowed it for a while. And this is also a way to weaken Amaterasu. By separating the divine body and the spirit, the divine power is also divided. That’s why she could appear before you. Otherwise, the spiritual body in this Mirror World could never go out into the outside world.”
“Is that so…”
“So, the first Zi’ai An you met was her.”
“Yeah, I’m also more used to calling her… But you are all ‘Zi’ai An’, just like Ruanruan and Lianbing…”
“In that case, shall I give you a nickname?”
She tied up her hair, tilted her head, and gave me a gentle and elegant smile, saying.
“That would be perfect.”
“Eh? You’ll do it for me?”
“I remember you used to complain that my naming style was terrible, and then you called yourself Kuuga, didn’t you?”
“Of course, I still think your naming style is terrible. By the way, I can no longer read your thoughts, but it’s incredibly easy to guess what you’re thinking. How many years do you think I’ve lived in your heart?”
This is not just snatching away what I wanted to say, but even snatching away what I was thinking of saying in my heart.
“… I still want a nickname from you.”
“Ugh…”
What’s with this soft tone and expression… Zi’ai’s attitude seems to have improved a lot compared to before?
Speaking of which, regarding this ghost living in my heart, I didn’t know she was a female ghost before and always treated her like a close best friend.
Now that she suddenly appeared before me in the form of a woman, it’s really making me uncomfortable!
It’s like a buddy I’ve known for years suddenly turns into a girl, how am I supposed to treat her?
And don’t talk to me so gently all of a sudden!
I can’t help but get the superficial and embarrassing thought, ‘Does she like me?’!
Ugh, I’m conflicted, my head feels like it’s going to explode.
I should treat her now like I did before!
Zi’ai’s Title is the Blue one! So blue!
Blue! Friendship blue! Blue boy… no, this seems a bit wrong…
Anyway, she treats me like a brother, how can I think about going after her?!
No, I don’t want to go after her, I just mean that as a woman, I can’t be too casual, I have to be careful in all aspects.
“Alright, Juncheng, your expression is more colorful than a mask. Does my different gender from you bother you?”
“………”
It should be said that I’m too unaccustomed to it.
“This is mainly to make it easier to interact with you. If I were in a male form, it would be difficult to integrate the other me into your harem, and it might also make you vigilant. If I were mistaken for a love rival, or even a villain trying to steal your women, it would be troublesome.”
“…..”
If Zi’ai were a man, his appearance would be similar to mine, right? Then it would become me and the other me competing for a harem?
Wow, what kind of melodramatic scene is this, where twin brothers fight over a harem…
Fortunately, Zi’ai chose to be a woman. Otherwise, I would definitely want to kill myself.
If I saw another version of myself who was superior to me in all aspects and handled things more astutely, anyone would have the thought of just ending it all.
“The most critical thing is that we couldn’t fuse.”
“… Huh? Uh-huh? Fuse?! No, this, fuse, not that…”
“It means that exact thing.”
Eh? It’s really that ‘fusion’?
Are you serious?
Zi’ai’s expression was very serious, and she didn’t look like she was joking.
It should be said that she was never the type to joke around.
Then, is it… Huh?
“The Zi’ai An who is in the outside world now has fallen in love with you, and her main body is me. Do you really think… I have no feelings for you at all?”
Suddenly, I was against the wall.
Zi’ai sat on top of me, pressing her chest against mine, and squinted with a charming smile.
The most fitting line for this expression is ‘Little girl, obediently surrender to me!’ Hey, hey, hey, hasn’t the role reversed?
“Eeeek?! Wait, but your Title is Blue?! Blue should be a trustworthy friend!”
“Ah, you’re talking about this color? It’s just because I like blue, I can change it anytime. Look, turn red.”
Zi’ai got off me and pointed to the title above her head. The title above her head quickly turned red.
“Turn green.”
It turned green again.
“I have some of the permissions of the Yata no Kagami, so I can do these things easily.”
“… So the content of the Title can also be changed freely?”
Did Zi’ai also give herself the Title of ‘Dream of the Fetus’?
“That can’t be done. The content of the Title cannot be changed. Honestly, I still don’t understand the rules for the Yata no Kagami’s Titles. It feels very random…”
“It really is random…”
“But Titles are just for show. Being able to see through the true name is the most important thing. This means that Juncheng, you can control demons.”
“Well, as long as they don’t provoke me, I won’t provoke them.”
“Heh, that’s your personality. That’s why I’m willing to be your friend.”
“Still friends?”
“Friends can also be interpreted as ‘sex friends’.”
“It can be interpreted like that too!”
“Want to have a go?”
“Stop, stop, stop! Isn’t this becoming like it was at the mansion!”
“Let’s not talk about these dirty things. About my nickname, Juncheng, have you thought of it?”
You were the one who started it!
… I should think about the nickname properly.
“Okay, then I think…”
Thinking of a nickname… Ruanruan was called Ruanruan because her first impression was that of a pure and soft girl when I first met her.
What was my first impression of Kū? Mysterious? Cold?
Novel
—-…
Suddenly, I felt like I was about to remember something, but in the end, I remembered nothing.
Only one name remained in my mind in the end.
Without thinking, I spoke out the name.
“Um, how about ‘Lin Ai’?”
“Huh? This… Could it be that Juncheng, you still remember?”
“Remember what?”
“… No, it’s nothing. ‘It’s normal if you don’t remember.'”
“Huh? What does that mean?”
“Alright, let’s not dwell on this matter. You don’t want to know.”
“… Why are you like this too, Zi’ai…”
Just like Lan, you’re both saying ‘I don’t know because it’s for your own good’. But if I don’t know what it is, how can I judge if it’s good or not?
“Okay, then this…”
“No need. This title doesn’t belong to me. Although she may never use this title again in her life, I still can’t replace her.”
It seems there was someone named Lin Ai, and I knew her, but forgot her?
Eh? But I’ve never known anyone named Lin Ai?
“Just call me by my name. After all, the other Zi’ai An will disappear by then.”
“Wait, what does that mean?”
I frowned and asked Zi’ai.
She didn’t look at me, but said faintly.
“I told you before, only by awakening Amaterasu can Juncheng be sent away from here. But the awakening of Amaterasu means the purification of this world. If this world is truly purified, what will happen to the inhabitants of this Spiritual World?”
Zi’ai slowly turned her face and warned me sharply in a tone I was familiar with.
“Don’t tell me Juncheng, you haven’t thought about this.”
Just as Zi’ai said, I had already thought of it, but I deliberately ignored the problem, not thinking about it, not caring about it, not asking about it.
Because if I thought about it further, I could only get
“What will happen to her?”
“Of course, everything will disappear.”
The cruelest answer.
