Chapter 224: A Promise Bound to be Broken

Fuuu-!

Only the sound of the air conditioners is present in the well-lit meeting room. Various ministers that governed Japan gathered in the exact room. It is evident with a heavy atmosphere being pressed down on the normal law-abiding citizens such as Souta, Marine, and Matsubara. The figures that they can only get to see on the television are looking right at them—to be exact, at the [Creations] beside them.

Shiro, who acted stoically, watched the reactions of others.

'Hm... I see. That's how a normal human would react.'

During his past lives, not once had he experienced it as a normal person. As the Commandant of Azur Lane's Naval Base, interactions with officials were not a thing that he lacked. Ministers, Chief Executives, Generals... Even the Prime Minister himself visited his office quite a few times. There are also international delegators which were composed of Japan's allies against the Siren. Basically the entire world itself. With this experience, he could not feel much intimidation.

"Kikuchihara."

Seeing that someone whispered beside the woman in glasses, he deduced that she is the head of this council. People like her who have that kind of stern aura are not that difficult to distinguish.

"Then, we will be starting now." The office lady said as she stood up. "I am the General Coordination officer of the Special Situations Countermeasures Council, Kikuchihara."

She began to introduce the people involved with their recent headaches.

"Light novel author Matsubara Takashi, real name Ousawa Takeshi."

"Storyboard writer, Nakanogane Maasaki."

"Souta Mizushino from Metropolitan Kissui High School."

"Illustrator Marine. Real name is Koura Ayano."

"Manga creator, Gokou Ruri."

"Animation director, Fukushiro Sakurai."

Upon hearing the last name, a thought flashed in some ministers. Since they are clear about the identities of each "target" that they have, the knowledge of Shiro being proficient in Bajiquan is prominent. Trained by the late Chinese Grandmaster Wang Xuanji who resided in Nagoya City, Shiro spent most of his time attending his lessons in his earlier days as a mangaka.

Though they knew this, they were still surprised that he could take down a fourth of their special operations team. They knew him as he appeared on television oftentimes, forming the image of a normal animation director. Since they have children, they are also familiar with his works.

Heck, the Minister of Defense is supposed to buy Madoka Magica merchandise this evening if not for this meeting...

"I apologize for bringing you here suddenly." Kikuchihara said.

"You should have sent an official with his business card than to greet us with guns."

Hearing Meteora's direct retort, Shiro nodded with satisfaction.

"I apologize. To be honest, we have no idea where to begin with. We were supposed to contact you more peacefully... until an incident happened this afternoon."

An image of the fight in Akihabara was projected on the whiteboard. Blurry pictures of several [Creations] can also be seen in it.

"More than a hundred citizens were injured by the aftermath of this event. Then there's this image captured by our satellite feed."

Another image was projected. This time, it is a giant black robot that suddenly popped up in Japan's airspace.

"Judging by the severity of this situation, we have no choice but to resort to such means. I apologize for it."

Her reasoning left them silent. Even Meteora judged this situation to be the most rational step through her knowledge of this world. In the information age where surveillance can be found everywhere, it is hard to hide under the radars. From their first appearance, she already predicted that this would somewhat happen. After all, Japan is no longer in the middle but modern age. Each action and decisions taken by the government are efficient. Truly, a benefit borne out of the governing system refined within hundreds of years.

"As for the reason for your presence here, it is to cooperate with the Special Disasters Case 105 designated by the government."

An image of a wavelength appeared this time.

"Our meteorological agency detected unknown radio interference and abnormal electromagnetic fields of an unknown cause. Since then, we have been receiving reports of sighted flying objects of an unknown origin."

Another set of blurry images was projected on the screen. Based on the appearance, Shiro concluded that it is the military girl from before.

"Up until this point, we thought that this is a hoax... until we received this footage."

A lanky man wielding a black katana and the military girl is seen facing each other in the projected video. They are in Otaguro Park this time, clashing against each other. Trees were felled with each of their blows, the ground shaking from their strength. The video being jittery enough is proof of it.

"Mirokuji Yuuya..." Nakanogane murmured. "He's a character from Exclusive Underground. A shounen manga."

"What is the name of the author?"

Kikuchihara asked suddenly.

"It's Yatouji-san." Shiro replied. "His pen name is Ryou Yatouji. Real name, Gouda Ryousuke."

"You know him personally, Sakurai-san?" Nakanogane shockingly asked.

"Well, that's right. He used to be my assistant back in Madoka Magica's earlier volumes."

"""Eh?!?!"""

For Yatouji, their impression of him is that of a "serious" man. His tone is flat, his expression is always lazy due to lack of sleep, and his uninterested look made him a meme for some time.

"Arrange him to be taken to custody."

"Yes, Ma'am."

After that, she revealed that one such creator was attacked at a police station. If not for their cover-ups, the existence of the supernatural would be revealed to the entire world. Regarding these dangerous elements, the government decided to keep silent for now.

This became the reason why [Creators] have to be protected by the custody.

More talks happened at this time. The existence of other [Creations], their public exposure, and many more are discussed. Although, Meteora's theory topped them all.

She introduced the concept that this world is the "real world", the center of every other world. It has the highest layer of information available, making it conducive to the creation of new worlds. The most concerning matter is the event that she dubbed "The Great Destruction".

Simply put, it is the time when different worlds collide with this world, resulting in their mutual destruction. The "real world" still has its "restorative power" preventing such occurrences, but the military girl's plots continuously weaken it. One such plan is summoning such [Creations] in this world.

Just from their continued existence, they are already consuming "restorative power". Another plan is her ploy to cause a huge disturbance that alerts many people. If they do come in contact with it, their worldview would collapse. This will result in another round of weakening of the "restorative power". If this continues, the world would end.

As expected, the ministers' expressions turned for the worse upon hearing this. Another set of discussions centered around it before they are granted support when it comes to controlling the public.

"In order to move freely, please grant us legal status."

"We will work with the Minister of Justice and National Personnel Authority to issue the six of you valid Status of Residency... and appointment as government officials. We will issue the relevant documents."

"Finally! We can bid farewell to being homeless." Selesia sighed out of relief.

It is troublesome for Souta—a high schooler—to accommodate Selesia and Meteora for a long time. They were supposed to live in a hotel room with the help of Shiro, but it seems like they would no longer need to trouble him.

"I appreciate it."

Kikuchihara nodded with a smile before saying:

"Based on the proceedings of this meeting, I will submit a draft proposal to the cabinet. I request the cooperation of the various ministers in handling this situation. As of today, the creators and the creations... will be granted the protection of the council."

*****

"Huff..."

A small white fog was breathed out by him as thoughts continued to pass in his mind.

'World destruction... The mission name makes sense. But, the magnitude of it... the level of the final boss this time around, I'm afraid that it is comparable to the Incubators.'

Shiro gripped the metal railing as he thought of the prowess of hundreds of such Incubators. If not for his [Time Card] and [Tail Gear], they would be left with Madoka's wish coming true. They might have completed the mission, yes, but it would be their failure towards Madoka.

Now, this mission is even worse than it. Failure is the least they need to worry about—true deaths can occur in this mission.

'The others... I need to ensure their safety.'

As the reliable Shiro, the richest in the chat group, he is determined to save them from that fate. Nobody knew except his wives, but one of Shiro's deepest dispositions is none other than... self-sacrifice. He alone is enough to carry the burden for others. This is how he did things in his past lives. He never allowed them to be hurt by heavy responsibilities, resulting in him undertaking them alone.

This is how he sacrificed nearly everything just for his home world's continued existence. He did not allow others to be hurt under his berserk state. His <ORIGIN STATE> is a double-edged weapon that can not only harm himself but the ones close to him as well. He might be selfish and inhumane in some regards, but this is what makes Shiro... Shiro.

Once someone gets his trust, they are no longer bystanders in his eyes. They are someone that he will protect, someone that he will push away in harm's way.

"Shiro."

He turned back and saw Kal'tsit in casual attire. She wore a black t-shirt and a skirt that goes above her knees. It is shorter than usual, but it is one that did not hinder her movements. Hence, she chose it.

"I know what you are thinking." She suddenly said telepathically. "You are thinking of carrying this burden alone."

"..."

His mouth twitched as her guess was spot-on.

"Women's intuition..." He mumbled. "Everything became much more dangerous than the initial estimate. Might as well revise the plans."

He replied through the link that she established. This stealthy conversation of theirs is to guard against possible surveillance in this area. Even though Kal'tsit surveyed it with her [Great Sage] and a negative came out, they are still cautious.

"Don't. You have us."

A resolute look can be seen in her light green eyes. For this person who has affected her more than anyone else, she remembered how to express her emotions. It is something that became a relic of the past, left behind by her continuous struggles over the mission that she was given. She deemed it unnecessary, hence she acted more like a robot who fulfills her pre-set commands.

Only, she felt more 'alive' from the moment she met him. Perhaps it's because of his charm or his unique personality, but it just happened.

"Don't repeat what happened before. I ask you."

"...I understand." Shiro recalled Cardinal's similar worries and sighed inwardly. "I will share the burden with everyone."

At that moment, Kal'tsit possessed an extremely rare thin smile—one that did not appear for a few centuries. It formed a sharp contrast with her usual expressionless appearance yet looked beautiful with her.

Unbeknownst to her, however, Shiro is feeling complicated at the moment.

'If the most drastic situation comes... Sorry, Kal'tsit, Cardinal. I might not be able to fulfill my promise...'

*****

A/N: I have something to announce. The fun facts won't be daily now, but only when it is convenient for me to write one. I didn't expect that coming back from the holiday, we would already have a lot of things to think about in Uni. As I speak, I sneaked in this chapter while working on my school works. Apologies.