Chapter 19: No One Knows

That night, Shido lay on the living room sofa, his mind racing.

"..."

As he stared absently at the light of the incandescent lamp set in the

ceiling, he let out a long sigh. Kurumi would no doubt be at school the next

day. In which case, his job would begin again.

Increase his likability, kiss her, seal her power. Then everything would be

resolved. Kurumi would stop killing people, so naturally, Mana would stop

killing Kurumi.

This was the only way of reaching the lone happy ending available to him.

However...

"..." He felt heavy like a giant weight had been placed on his body. He

expelled gloomy air from his lungs.

Then he heard the sound of the front door opening down the hallway.

"Hmm...?"

He somehow managed to sit his burdensome body up and looked toward the living room door. The only person he could think of who would come in without ringing the bell was Kotori, but she had said she was going to stay on the ship that night for work. So who was it?

While he considered this, the door opened, and Tohka poked her face

inside, acting timid.

"Tohka?"

"Mm. Can I come in?"

Given that she had already come into the house, he couldn't help but feel that she had gotten the timing for that question a little wrong. He decided not to bother with such details.

"S-sure. Of course."

She stepped into the living room and ran over to him.

she crawled up onto the sofa and set herself between it and him. "What are you doing...?"

"It's fine. Just be quiet." She wrapped her arms around him to squeeze

him tightly from behind.

"T-Tohka? What exactly...?" he asked, perspiring when he felt something soft against his back.

"Mm. The TV said to do this when you're feeling sad or scared."

"...And which program was this?"

"Mommy and Me...I think."

The children's show of all children's shows. A smile slipped across his face. It seemed that they were right. He did actually feel a little better.

He didn't know how long they had sat like that when Tohka suddenly

opened her mouth.

"...Reine told me."

"Told you...?"

"About Kurumi and Mana. I asked her why you seemed off, and she told me."

"...! Sh-she did..." He swallowed hard.

He knew that Reine didn't really like to tell Tohka too much about the Spirits and the AST. She had probably assumed that Tohka's mental state would have taken a turn for the worse if she didn't tell her something.

"Shido. Do you remember what I said when I came to live in this house?

Huh?"

"If another Spirit like me shows up...I want you to save them."

"Ohhh." He nodded. He remembered that quite well.

And he had said he would. That feeling wasn't a lie, and that resolve

hadn't changed even now.

"But Kurumi's—"

"—The same as me."

"Huh?"

She pressed her face into his back.

"You were there for me. You saved me. But no one's there for Kurumi. She's been there with no one holding out a hand to her a lot longer than I was."

She squeezed him harder, to the point where it almost hurt.

"If you hadn't been there, if I had kept going like that, constantly exposed

to nothing but malice and hostility forever and ever...I might have ended up

like Kurumi."

"Y-you wouldn—," he started and then cut himself off.

Two months ago, when he had first met Tohka, she was so wild it was

almost impossible to believe it now. Sick of a fight she couldn't see the end

of, exhausted, worn to the bone, her heart was on the verge of being crushed.

It wasn't his place to casually comment on that despair now.

"If Kurumi really is such a bad Spirit that there's no saving her anymore, then I'll protect you."

"Huh?"

"So... Shido. Please. Just look at her one more time. Don't let her

slaughter any more people. Don't let her heart be worn down anymore."

"...!" He gulped.

Aah, I finally get it.

He couldn't stand the idea of Kurumi killing people. He absolutely could

not allow Mana to murder Kurumi. He had resolved to stop Kurumi to end

this cycle. But there was an important piece missing from this thinking.

"...Thanks, Tohka."

"Mm... Mm? Wh-what for? I didn't do anything."

"...No, it's thanks to you."

Right. Even though what he needed to do was kiss Kurumi and lock her

power away, he had been totally focused on the people Kurumi killed and on

Mana. The incredibly shocking scene he'd witnessed had knocked the very

obvious fact of saving Kurumi right out of his head.

The Spirit Kurumi had indeed killed any number of people. This was

something that could not be overlooked, no matter how she tried to atone for

it.

But...when he'd sealed Tohka's power, he had wanted to save her from

the bottom of his heart. He'd prayed he could somehow help this girl with

such irrational malice turned toward her.

That's why he had been able to act. He had a power to recover what went

beyond human intellect and the ability to seal away the powers of Spirits. But

the only reason a high school boy with an average physique, strength, and brains

could even attempt to make this happen, coughing blood all the while, was

his own single-mindedness.

Save Kurumi. Rescue this girl trapped in a chain and cycle of murder.

And Mana, too. He couldn't let this girl who said she was his little sister

kill Kurumi anymore. He wouldn't let her wear down her heart any further.

Fine if it was an illusion. Fine if it was empty imaginings. Unless he truly

believed he could do this, it would be impossible for him to reach out his

hand.

"—Tohka. I'm all right now."

"Mm. You're not sad anymore?"

"Nope."

"You're not scared anymore?"

"...Well, I'm maybe a little scared." He looked sheepish and smiled

wryly. "But I'm okay."

"Mm...okay." She loosened her arms.

He got to his feet and stretched. At the same time, his stomach growled.

Now that he was thinking about it, he had thrown up all his lunches on the

street, so he felt like he hadn't had anything to eat all day.

"How about I whip something up? You're staying for supper, right?"

"Yeah!" Tohka nodded vigorously

<pov-switch: Fraxinus>

hikaru stood beside Kotori, her eyes fixed on the screen displaying the conversation between Tohka and shido. Hikaru's attention was fully absorbed in the conversation, and she stood motionless beside Kotori.

Turning to Hikaru, "Did you watch how the work was done?", Kotori asked.

hikaru ignore her as she still focused on the screen

"i heard what you told Kurumi back then" Her expression stiffened, and she flicked her Chupa Chups stick upward, "something about traumatizing him can make him grow up?" she finished

Finally turning to face Kotori, Hikaru snapped "Say it directly. What do you want to say?"

"You lied in your reason for not helping Shido. What was the real reason?" Kotori asked, her voice calm but insistent.

Hikaru's eyes narrowed as she replied, "Let's say you're right. What would change if I tell you?" Her anger was palpable, and she made a move to leave.

"yeah you right, there's no point in that so let's change the subject," kotori said as she presses some buttons and the screen in front of them change its content

hikaru eyes widened as she turned to see what was showing

"That--?"

"yes! The picture of your first meeting with shido or that's what it should have been" kotori said

hikaru face was surprised for some time just to went neutral after a few moments

"The image was pulled from data of a previous live video. After the incident involving the dog that you mentioned, we conducted extensive research on the matter. What we found was quite troubling. We are aware that you possess the power to manipulate light and can become invisible, but this is not the case in the image. We monitored you during that time and you were not invisible. In fact, this seems to be a recurring issue as all live videos capturing you appear the same - you are invisible in all of them. We even took some pictures of you and, after some time, usually a few hours, you disappeared from them. " She paused to take a deep breath before finishing her question. " So, can you please explain what happened?"

Teeth grinding could be heard throughout the room as the blaring sirens signaled a disturbance.

"Captain, her mood is-!"

Suddenly, Hikaru approached Kotori, grabbed her by her clothes, and lifted her up.

"Captain!"

Kotori raised her arm, signaling for them to stand down.

"I've had enough! Question after question, do you think I am some kind of prisoner to you?" She shouted, clearly agitated.

"You're my friend," Kotori remained calm. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. We're only trying to help you. Remember, you promised me not to let your emotions control you. So, calm down," Kotori finished, fixing her eyes on Hikaru.

"Tch!" Hikaru let go of her, clearly still upset.

"I want to go home, as for your questions" she glance at her," You said it, i don't have to answer"

"as you want, sorry for my behavior," kotori said as she bow in apology

".... please stop," she Mumble as she left

Kotori collapsed into her chair, her head in her hands. She could feel the eyes of the others on her, but she couldn't bring herself to look up. Kannazuki Kyōhei, a handsome man with golden hair, approached her.

"Captain, are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm not the person you should ask this question to," Kotori said, her mind still reeling from the encounter with Hikaru.

'She was about to cry,' Kotori thought to herself. 'What in the world is she going through to show those expressions?'

...

Hikaru stood in front of Shido's house, her head on the door as she mumbled to herself

"That's not me, that's not how I believe I would act," Hikaru muttered to herself, trying to make sense of her emotions. "Every time I try to act calm, something inside makes me lose control... I don't understand." she finished as she raised her head from the door, "Should I apologize now, how many times did I already apologize," She hesitated before raising her hand to ring the bell, but the door suddenly opened before she could.

"Oh, Hikaru, it's you," Shido said with a smile. "I heard some weird knocks on the door, so I came to check. Come in, I made some hamburgers for you."

Hikaru stepped inside, and Shido closed the door behind her. He could see the tension in her body and wondered what was bothering her. "Is everything okay?" he asked, hoping to ease her worries.

"Y-you could really smile as if nothing had happened," Hikaru said, her voice trembling. She watched as Shido smiled again, and although she was glad to see him happy, she couldn't help but feel envious. It seemed so easy for him to overcome everything, to move on from pain and trauma as if they were nothing.

"Thank you"

"HUH?!"

"You make me understand something important," he smiled, "From the start, I tried to apply the logic of someone who lived their whole life with everything to someone who lost everything. Each one of you guys goes through hard and painful experiences that change your view of life. I was an idiot, a big one, and that's why I'm going to change my ways to save everyone... to save you, Hikaru," he finished with conviction.

Hikaru felt a lump form in her throat as she listened to his words. She knew he meant every word he said. "That's unfair," She mumbled to herself and a single tear slipped down her cheek.

Shido stepped back, taken aback by the sudden change in events. "Ohh! Hikaru, why are you crying? Did I say something wr--"

"Hngah?!"

and Before he could finish his sentence, Hikaru launched a sharp fist into his solar plexus, and Shido bent over, groaning in pain.

"Idiot! You talk too much," she said as she passed him, heading to the living room. "I hope you prepared the bigger piece for me."

Shido just laughed awkwardly, rubbing his sore stomach. "Why does everyone love to hit me?" he wondered aloud.

----------------------------------------------------

(A/N): here is another chapter

by the way

I am using the light novel material if you find something different from the anime events

I am reading the light now and I am currently at volume 4

and to be honest with you guys, comparing the light novel Shido with the anime one is a crime

Man, he's the goat in the light novel, the amount of the character they cut from him in the anime is just sad

just like they did with Shirou, Touma, and Bell in the anime version

a well-writing character to a typical harem MC (but they still goats)

anyway, I am using the light novel Shido, for those who may be confused by Shido behavior in the next Ark

and the last thing.

do you want the chapters to be longer?

for example, this chapter is about 1900 words, I am talking about making the chapters with an average of 3000~3500 words