Chapter 13: Moving Into a Minefield

By some utter miracle, Nia's old apartment hadn't been foreclosed. I guess it could be some especially lenient property laws passed because of frequent spacequake property damage? Kyo internally questioned. Eh, best not to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Of course, this meant that the apartment had been left in the same state for over four years.

"So when DEM captured you, were you in your fudging living room or something?" Kyo growled sarcastically as he gingerly picked up a four year-old carton of takeout.

"Ahaha… no?" Nia laughed with embarrassment as she tried in vain to stuff a pile of wrappers into a bag. "It was actually an, uh... inconspicuous alleyway... while I was weak from hunger."

"Were you trying to get kidnapped or something?" Kyo muttered wearily. "Jeez, how careless can you get?"

"C'mon, Benefactor, I was on the verge of missing a deadline. You've gotta cut me some slack here." Nia whined sheepishly. Kyo sighed. Aren't you always on the verge of missing a deadline? "Alright, that's the last of the trash here. I think the collector comes tomorrow, so let's just leave these bags here for now..."

"Hold on, let me try something." Kyo grabbed [Naught] and began to focus on the energy of Nihility inside of it. Carefully applying a small layer to the edge of his sheath and reinforcing his hand with more Reiryoku, he suddenly slashed several times at the garbage.

"Hey wait-" Nia cried out before stopping herself. She watched in awe as [Naught], still sheathed, seemingly tore space asunder, erasing the trash from existence itself.

"Not bad. I think I could keep this state up for a good thirty minutes before I run out of Reiryoku and the Nihility begins affecting me," Kyo nodded. Thirty minutes isn't bad at all. Besides, I can still make an almost guaranteed retreat with [White] if I have to...

Nia seemed to internally compose herself before asking slowly, "Hey, Benefactor, isn't that the same power that you said ended up erasing an entire island?"

"Yeah, what about it? I said I can probably control it perfectly for at least thirty minutes, didn't I?"

"Did you figure that out before or after you unleashed it on the bags leaning against the cabinet holding all of my manga?" Nia smiled with a ferocity Kyo hadn't seen before.

"Uh... pass?" Kyo gulped.

"WHADDYA MEAN 'PASS'?" Nia howled.

—————I am the dividing line that shifts time and perspective—————

Maybe I overreacted a little, Nia reflected as she stared out at the moon from her bedside window. He had good intentions, after all. Plus he went through all that trouble to save me in the first place... but I still don't understand why. 

"[Raziel]," she whispered. The book manifested in her hand with a flash and flipped to a random page. "Nope, still completely unreadable," she sighed before hitting herself on the head. "Ugh, stupid Nia. Why can't you just trust him? This is exactly why you don't have any friends..." Flopping onto her bed and softly hitting her pillow, she weighed her options in her mind. Trusting him unconditionally is out of the question. Trying to interrogate him is too rude, and it wouldn't work anyway...

Nia's eye caught a glimpse of white from her dresser. "Well, I guess there's always the old-fashioned way to judge a man."

—————I am the dividing line that shifts time and perspective—————

THUNK-

Kyo's eyes shot open as he darted up from the living room couch, [Naught] unintentionally sizzling with red sparks. The fudge was that? An intruder? Surely Kurumi wouldn't come back to assassinate me, right? And the chances of a normal robber on my first night here... Finally spotting a silhouette in the dark, he began to channel the energy of Nihility into his sheath. 

"Identify yourself before I bisect you." Kyo stated coldly. The figure quickly raised their hands.

"Stop, stop! It's me!"

"...Nia?" Kyo's grip didn't loosen. "Or an imposter? Make your way to the light switch and turn it on. No funny business, or your head flies." 

"Ok, ok." Kyo watched vigilantly as Nia(?) slowly made their way over to the light, switched it on, and... "What the fork are you wearing?!" Before his shocked eyes, the light revealed a slightly flustered Nia clad in nothing but a bra and miniskirt in the style of a Victorian housemaid. The two stared at each other for a few seconds, one in anticipation and the other in complete bewilderment. 

"...so, you like what you see?" Nia finally asked.

"I'd like it a hundred times more if it wasn't in the middle of the night!" Kyo exclaimed with exasperation.

"But isn't that what all highschoolers dream of?" 

"No- I mean, maybe? Wait, since when did you label me a highschooler? Augh!" Kyo facepalmed, trying to hide his blushing face. "Just... just go back to sleep. I'm not the type of person to solicit services from someone they rescued, ok? I dream of a relationship with romance, not passion."

"Are you sure?" Nia made an attempt to emphasize her assets. "You know, most people dream of having a woman throw themselves at-"

"Don't try to act out your fetish doujins in real life, please." Kyo grumbled. "And, for your information, most people don't react well to loud noises in the dead of night too."

"Then why?"

"Sorry?"

"Why save me? There are nine other Spirits out there, and you even partnered with another to save me. Why?" 

Kyo paused. "...do I need a reason?"

"Oh please, those with nothing but noble intentions only exist within manga," Nia scoffed.

"Actually, there might be someone like that on this Earth," Kyo sighed. "But that isn't me. You want the truth behind your rescue? I just believe that you suffered the most, and that I was capable of easing your pain."

"...seriously?" Nia looked a little lost. "No greater purpose?"

"Well, if you want me to be specific, DEM successfully made you a human donut and stole a majority of your power in the last Iteration. But I count that as 'suffering'. So I've rescued you before that could happen."

Looking quite uneasy at the mentioning of a 'human donut,' Nia slowly nodded. "Then, what's your plan now?"

"My mentor once told me to fight for the beauty in the world, so I'm thinking of just experiencing life for a while. Witness this beauty for myself," Kyo shrugged. "None of the other Spirits are in as much imminent suffering as you were, so they'll meet their happy ends in due time. I wouldn't be opposed to offering them a helping hand though. Especially [Hermit], since she's basically a kid being bullied by the military."

"Say, Benefactor, you're turning out a lot more boring than I'd imagined," Nia commented in a tone Kyo was unable to read.

"Reality is often disappointing. And you can drop the title already…" Kyo smiled weirdly, his right eye twitching. "...and maybe switch back to normal clothes."

Nia suddenly chuckled. "Sure, Kyo."

As Nia returned to her room, Kyo absentmindedly picked up the manga that Nia had knocked onto the floor. Placing it back onto the shelf, he finally decided to implement his most tried-and-true strategy:

"Oh, whatever. I'll just sleep on it. Tomorrow's gonna be a long day..."

Back on her bed, Nia gave a slight smile.

—————I am the dividing line that shifts time and perspective—————

BEEEEEEEEEEP- BEEEEEEEEEEP- BEEEEEEEEEEP-

Muddlefudger, what is it this time? Kyo's eyes shot open, instantly being blinded by the midday light. He quickly closed his eyes again and layered a pillow on top. Oh, it's lunch. That explains it.

"Kyo, let's go! It's a spacequake!" Nia's voice sounded from the direction of the kitchen.

"Where's the nearest Danny's?" Kyo asked calmly.

"Huh? Danny's? Over an hour's walk away, but this isn't the time to be hungry! C'mon, even a Spirit can be injured from a spacequake!" Nia insisted.

"If we're not close to a Danny's, then we should be completely safe," Kyo replied as he piled another pillow on his head. Today's April 10th, which, if I'm not literal years off, means that...

—————I am the dividing line that shifts perspective—————

Multiple blocks away, a giant floating black-and-purple sphere suddenly exploded, blasting away buildings, trees, and a certain blue-haired boy. At its epicenter stood a girl in a purple armored dress standing on a golden throne.

[Princess] had finally descended.