End - Still here

"Amakusa."

Looking out the window, Tozue was dazed and focused on a praying mantis climbing a tree, in the distance.

"Amakusa!"

Flinching, he turned to look down at the desk.

His long red haired bobbed up and down with his head.

Tozue's orange eyes were now fixated on the person sitting at the wooden desk.

"Oh… yeah!?"

Hastily tapping the wood with her fingernail, she asked:

"Do you have any notes for me, from your fight with the Coyote Devil?"

Tozue put his hand into his hoodie's front pouch, pulling out a small notepad.

"Here's some notes I took of its abilities."

Taking a step forward, dropping it in front of her, he looked around the room until she told him he could leave.

"Amakusa, there's literally just a bunch of scribbles of the same woman on each of these pages."

Embarrassed, Tozue looked back at her, quickly pointed at the notepad, and said:

"No, not those pages, go to the very back of my notepad."

Fidgeting and watching her flip through the pages until he got to his data, he heard a voice next to him.

"Still ain' over her, are ya mate?"

It was Mister Insect.

Mister Insect returned to Tozue over time, after the battle with Norway's forces.

It had been six months since then.

Tozue and the insect devil were practically one entity now.

This was demonstrated by Tozue still maintaining his chitin armor and four arms.

Though he hid his extra arms underneath his baggy hoodie, he didn't wear any pants.

No longer needing to speak out loud to talk to him, Tozue transmitted his thoughts.

"I do."

After a brief pause, the Insect Devil said:

"Christ, I can' believe I'm gonna say this… being with you has made me a real pansy, mate…. sorry for your loss."

Tozue stopped fidgeting and he started to look down at his chitin-plated feet.

"I appreciate it, Mister Insect."

Another moment with silence passed.

"These are some good notes, good job on killing that devil… its commonly feared, so it has been written off as especially strong."

Looking at her, he said:

"Alright then, I'll be going, Misses Ichinose."

Sighing, Ichinose pushed her glasses back in, as they were slowly dropping down her nose bridge.

"Yeah, you can go."

Pushing the door open, Tozue walked down a tiled hallway.

The tiles were mostly white, with a grey or brown square here and there.

White stucco and simple wood decorations made the walls.

To his right, was minimalistic windows, giving way to the streets outside.

He had been stationed in Hokkaido with the third division, and it was now winter.

Despite only turning 1800, the sun was setting, and it was quickly becoming very dark outside.

This darkness let him see his reflection in the glass.

Tozue changed some of his look, as time went by.

Taking some inspiration from… her… Tozue, with the help of his handlers, put his hair into two braids, with bangs covering his eyebrows.

He only wore an unnecessarily oversized grey hoodie, with no pants.

Pants really weren't necessary anymore, as Tozue still wore his chitin armor, although he streamlined it, and designed it to look like the plug suits from his favorite mecha anime.

While walking and looking at himself, Mister Insect faded in from nothingness, walking a few paces behind Tozue.

He looked just like Tozue now, losing his shapeless form.

Only difference was that instead of a hoodie, he was wearing full armor.

"You doin' good still, Tozue?"

He also kept his accent and voice.

Moving his tired, ringed eyes to Mister Insect in the reflection, Tozue said to him, out loud:

"I'm still here, aren't I?"