Welt vanished into a shower of light, and a brief, suffocating silence descended upon the abandoned workshop.
Tokisaki Kurumi stood rooted to the spot, her usual, effortlessly seductive smile gone, replaced by a complex expression rarely seen on her face—one mixed with solemnity, contemplation, and even a hint of... reverence.
Her golden clock-eye narrowed slightly as she gazed at the spot where Welt had disappeared, murmuring softly to herself, her voice so low that only she could hear it:
"Accepting power to protect, burning oneself out for others... and finally, leaving hope and warning for those who come after..."
She shook her head gently, a slightly bitter curve to her lips. "Heh... he truly was a... respectable yet foolish fellow."
This sentiment lasted only a short while. When she looked up again, her face had reverted to that unfathomable smile, tinged with a hint of languor and danger.
She turned to Shido, whose expression was complicated, and lightly tapped her temple with the flintlock's barrel, her tone casual but undeniably firm:
"Well then, young man over there~" She tilted her head.
"If I were you, I'd keep everything you saw and heard here today well and truly locked away inside. After all, knowing too many 'truths' can lead to your demise~"
Her words were like sweet poison. "For your own sake, and for the sake of those around you, act wisely."
Without waiting for Shido's response, her gaze swept over Chinatsu, who was still unconscious, leaning against the wall.
"As for this young lady..." she drawled, "you'll stay here with her until she naturally wakes up. No leaving, alright? It's a small request from a lady like me~"
Having said that, she no longer paid attention to Shido. Her figure seemed to merge into the shadows, disappearing silently from the spot.
The next second, her silhouette was vaguely visible sitting on the edge of a broken roof opening high above the workshop, looking up at the sky where night had just fallen and stars were beginning to appear. Her back, in the faint morning light, seemed a little lonely, as if she were contemplating something.
(To live...?) Kurumi gazed at the sky, repeatedly chewing on Welt's final words, an ineffable, complex light flickering in her golden eyes.
(Such a luxurious word... what does it mean to me...?)
It wasn't until Kurumi's figure disappeared from the rooftop that Shido finally let out a long, complete exhalation of the breath he had been holding for so long, feeling his taut nerves relax slightly.
He slid down, leaning against the cold wall, and wiped away the cold sweat that had appeared on his forehead at some point.
(At least... temporarily safe?)
His gaze fell on the unconscious Chinatsu not far away, his heart filled with an incomparable complexity.
Everything he had experienced today—Origami's abnormality, AST's encirclement, Kurumi's appearance, the Spatial Quake's eruption, and the thrilling past recounted by Welt Yang... the sheer volume of information almost overloaded his brain.
(Chinatsu-san... is she really just an innocent bystander who got caught up in this? Why did Mr. Walter choose her specifically? What exactly are the 'Corridor of Illusions' and 'Inheritance'?)
He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. The most urgent task was to contact Kotori!
Shido cautiously observed the direction of the rooftop, confirming that Kurumi's attention did not seem to be below.
He tiptoed to a broken, dusty window, hiding himself in the shadow of the wall, then lowered his voice, almost to a whisper, as he called into his invisible earpiece:
"Kotori... Kotori! Do you hear me? It's me!"
Almost immediately, Kotori's anxious yet weary voice came through, with the noisy discussions on the Fraxinus bridge in the background.
"Shido! You idiot! We finally got a hold of you! Are you okay?! We can only pinpoint your approximate location right now, in an abandoned industrial area!"
"There were high energy reactions and a Spatial Quake in that area just now, and then all your signals disappeared! What happened?! What about Chinatsu? And that Welt and Nightmare?!"
Shido took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady, and began to report the thrilling experience in the most concise language possible:
"I'm fine, and Chinatsu-san is with me. She's... she's unconscious, but she doesn't seem to have any external injuries."
He paused, organizing his words. "We were brought to an abandoned factory by Nightmare using her abilities. Welt... Welt Yang, he... disappeared."
"Disappeared?! What happened?!"
"Before he disappeared... he told us some things."
Shido's tone became exceptionally heavy. "He said... the Eurasian Great Disaster thirty years ago actually gave birth to two Spirits. One was the First Spirit, and the other... was a Spirit with the power of 'reason,' named... Welt Joyce."
He recounted Welt's story in as much detail as possible—about Joyce being adopted by scientists, about DEM's massacre, about the city's destruction.
About Joyce sacrificing himself to protect the citizens, and passing on his power to a surviving young man, who later became Welt Yang... "...The truth of the Spirits is a natural disaster brought about by humanity itself..." Shido repeated the final words, his voice hoarse.
On the other end of the communication, there was a long silence. Only gasps and the hurried tapping of keyboards by technical staff could be heard.
Clearly, Fraxinus was also shaken by this secret (unrecorded history).
After a while, Kotori's grave voice finally spoke again, with unprecedented seriousness:
"...Shido, the situation you're reporting... is very important, but also extremely sensitive. If this is true..."
She paused. "Everything Welt Yang recounted is to be classified as top secret! No leaks are allowed until further analysis and confirmation!"
"We cannot send medical and retrieval teams to your location right now! Stay hidden and await rescue! Make sure Chinatsu's safety is guaranteed!"
"Also... Shido," Kotori's voice softened a little, with concern, "you be careful too. Today's events... must have been a great shock to you."
Shido leaned against the cold wall, looking at the sky outside the window that was gradually brightening, his heart a mix of emotions. "Yes... I know. I'll wait for you all."
Ending the communication, Shido once again turned his gaze to Chinatsu in the corner.
The girl was still asleep, her ice-blue hair spread like silk over the dust. Her serene sleeping face provided a stark contrast to the heavy conversation about the origins of the world that had just taken place.
(Chinatsu-san... when you wake up, will everything... still be the same as before?)
And he didn't notice that, when he turned to contact Fraxinus, Chinatsu's long eyelashes, like butterfly wings, subtly trembled.
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