What a wasted morning...
Or rather, not entirely accurate, it was more like the entire morning.
Due to certain events, they were delayed on their way, but every loss brings a gain. In that brief yet heartwarming time, Roy gained something precious...
Like a fleeting sense of happiness, a bared heart, or perhaps the warmth he sought.
The sudden embrace had created a perfect moment. For Roy, it was unexpected, warm, and deeply touching.
Until a voice in SHIKI' mind chimed in: "Such youthful passion~." Shattering the mood with its tactless remark.
The abrupt interruption ruined the atmosphere. Seeing her slower self finally make a move, the other personality within her mind, Ryougi Shiki, smirked uncontrollably, like a suppressed AK rifle.
His mischievous chuckle caused Shiki to falter, destroying the moment entirely.
Even for a girl like Shiki, such a situation inevitably brought a flush of embarrassment.
After all, in matters of love, there's an unwritten rule: whoever confesses first loses.
By all accounts, Roy should have been the one to take that step. Yet this idiot remained stuck in a state of advancing with worry and retreating with hesitation, leaving them at an impasse. Frustrated, Shiki had followed Shiki's advice, creating a chance for them to be alone by having him escort her to school.
But Roy, given such a perfect opportunity, played the part of a wooden statue, silent and unresponsive, merely walking forward like a butler or bodyguard trailing her side.
Did she need a bodyguard or butler? This fool, given a chance, couldn't he take it seriously?
As they neared the school in silence, SHIKI could bear it no longer. She turned sharply to face the quiet Roy, only to see...
Suppression, pain, stillness, distress, confusion, a myriad of negative emotions played across Roy's face.
He pondered intermittently, brows furrowing slightly. Though walking, his mind was elsewhere.
She recognized that expression: worry, contemplation, a burdened heart. She'd seen it on her father's face before, but on Roy?
It was utterly unexpected.
Could this powerful, enigmatic young man, whose presence seemed to render all obstacles trivial, show such an expression?
Did someone of his strength and deeds have worries?
Shiki didn't fully understand, but it dawned on her that this was no ordinary matter.
This youth, with his vast power and knowledge, seemingly omnipotent, was human after all.
As a human, he would have worries. As a human, he would feel joy, anger, sorrow, and fear. As a human, he would face challenges so grave that even someone like him would wear such an expression.
Though unaware of what had happened or why Roy, who was fine last night, was like this now, she could do something within her power.
She had a premonition: this was her best chance to understand him, perhaps the best opportunity for herself.
If she let it slip due to pride or hesitation, would happiness, as Kokutou's mother once said, slip through her fingers?
Rarely, Shiki set aside her reservations. Fine, you idiot, you win this time.
With that thought, she gently wrapped her arms around him from behind, beginning to share her heart.
That sudden warmth broke through Roy's thoughts, shattering the tangle of pain and doubt in his heart, pulling him from the cold, dark depths of his mind.
Roy's expression softened, and he glanced at the arms around his waist, murmuring softly.
"Shiki, thank you."
It was just warmth and an embrace, no passionate confessions of love.
No profound, romantic declarations, just a quiet hug from behind and standing by his side, enough.
Sometimes, silence and warmth convey more than words, the best way for them to express themselves.
Perhaps this moment of warmth and tranquility was the happiness that hadn't slipped through their fingers...
...
After a while, their memorable journey reached its end.
Though meant to be a trip to school, they arrived during the junior high students' lunch break.
This brief lunch period was precious for students. They could grab a bento and eat on the rooftop, leaving an hour for self-study or club activities after lunch.
But today's atmosphere was different. Instead of the usual vibrancy, the campus buzzed with a youthful, restless excitement, an abnormal fervor spreading through the school.
Club activities? Napping? Such mundane acts were too dull for today's events.
There's a simple, universal truth: gossip and spectacle are humanity's shared passion, even across species, dogs love a commotion, let alone energetic, gossip-hungry junior high students.
The moment Roy, arm in arm with SHIKI, stepped onto campus, the news spread like wildfire.
When word got out that the Ryougi family's eldest daughter had brought her boyfriend to school, no student, boy or girl, could suppress their burning curiosity.
"He's so handsome! That guy looks like a movie star!"
"He's got a cool vibe, though maybe a bit like a yakuza, considering Ryougi's family..."
"Shh, don't say that! You'll upset them."
"Yes, yes."
Meanwhile, Kokutou Mikiya, home sick and resting, caught the explosive news on his phone.
With so many students, some always carried phones or gadgets. Shiki's popularity was immense, her every move fodder for the city's online searches.
Her openly bringing a boyfriend to school was too juicy to ignore.
Within five minutes, regardless of captions, photos flooded the internet, dominating Misaki City's online buzz.
Roy didn't hide, standing openly without stopping the photos, leaving countless imagus online, easily found with a quick search.
Though Mikiya knew Shiki had someone she liked and had tried to move on, seeing them together still stung.
"So this is Shiki's boyfriend? Quite an impressive guy..."
Gazing at Roy and Shiki side by side, he sighed softly, murmuring. Then, with a loud "Bang!!" His front door was kicked open.
"Yo, lil bro Two, I'm here to go fishing!"
To Mikiya's shock, Cú Chulainn, a wooden fish slung over his shoulder, stood at his doorstep.
"Uh... cough... Sorry, Nii-san, I..."
The startling sight made the sick Mikiya cough. He tried to decline, citing his need to rest physically and emotionally, but Cú Chulainn strode over, hoisting him up.
"No way, man! A real guy doesn't let sickness win. I'll fix you up."
"Huh? Aaaah!!!"
Cú casually inscribed a Rune into Mikiya's body, ignoring his screams, and, like lifting luggage, dragged him off the balcony, leaping from the eighth floor.
"Wait! This is the eighth floor!!"
[SHOCKING!! Breaking News: Two Men Leap from Eighth Floor, the Reason Behind It...]
Even Fujino, on a business trip in Europe, paused at the news, quickly scrolling through her phone.
Ignoring the jumping story, she clicked on the news about SHIKI.
"Shiki and Roy... This is too..."
"Hm? What's up?"
Noticing Fujino's odd expression, the Ryougi patriarch, seated nearby, asked curiously.
"Oh... nothing, just saw something surprising."
"Surprising, huh..."
"Internet stuff, you young folks love it. Fun, but exaggerated, probably some trivial celebrity nonsense."
Hearing it was online news, the patriarch lost interest. An old man, he had little use for youthful internet trends.
Compared to that, he cared more about the magical family they'd meet soon.
"Phew..."
Relieved he didn't press, Fujino sighed.
Glancing at the patriarch, she thought, This is no small matter...
Due to the stares and chatter from classrooms and the field, the school grew chaotic. The commotion drew the administrative teacher, eating lunch in his office, outside.
He stepped out, seeing the packed field, and, to prevent accidents, dispersed the crowd, approaching Roy.
"Who are you? Don't you know how dangerous, "
He began to scold the culprit, Roy, but stopped short upon seeing SHIKI beside him, swallowing his reprimand.
The Ryougi family's eldest daughter...
Untouchable, untouchable.
He wasn't foolish. The youth arm in arm with her was either her boyfriend or a Ryougi family scion.
Either way, not someone a teacher could cross. Best to slink back and keep his job.
"Even so, you can't gather like this on the field. It's too dangerous..."
"And you lot! What are you gawking at? Nothing to see, scatter!!"
He cautiously advised, ensuring Roy's expression remained neutral before turning to shoo the onlookers.
"Shiki, you're really popular..."
Seeing the crowd's reluctant departure, Roy chuckled.
"Hmph, knowing that, and you're still hesitating? The line of people chasing me could stretch from here to Tokyo Bay."
Shiki, unusually, bantered back.
"Haha, then I've got quite a steal."
Roy laughed heartily, pushing open the classroom building's door for his princess, escorting her inside.
Like a knight delivering a princess to her castle, he'd reached the journey's end and should now retreat. Staying would likely unsettle the classroom's teacher.
This morning had been joyful, perhaps even grasping that happiness, but... he couldn't linger.
More pressing, critical matters awaited, leaving no time to pause.
Seizing happiness was the first step; now, he had to maintain and protect it.
This morning was a rare reward, and indulging further would be excessive.
Time didn't wait, not with a being capable of crushing the world lingering on this planet.
Though Shiki offered to help, Roy explained the foe's nature, a monster, or rather, a pseudo-god or evil god capable of shattering the planet. She couldn't get involved.
Disappointed at being unable to assist again, Shiki didn't insist this time.
If the enemy could crush planets like glass beads, it was beyond her. Even Roy, despite his power, was troubled by this absolute force. Joining would only burden him.
Agreeing to let Roy act alone, Shiki set one condition.
At their parting, she said earnestly, "Be careful, and you must come back alive, got it?"
"Of course. I'm not ready to die now."
After their exchange, Roy left the classroom, preparing to depart the school to attempt summoning or contacting the Nasuverse's absolute pinnacles.
For the Holy Spirit, he'd reach out to the Church via Merlin or Solomon. For the Enlightened One, he'd try his luck at a Buddhist site.
Tick,
The sound of a water droplet.
As he stepped from the classroom into the corridor, the building fell silent...
In an instant, the bustling surroundings, corridor, passageways, exits, emptied of students and people.
Even glancing back at the classroom he'd left, pushing the door open revealed nothing but an empty space, all traces of life gone.
"...An illusion?"
Roy murmured, shattering a corridor window and leaping from the height to escape the anomalous building.
But...
Clack!!
With a crisp footstep, as he landed, his senses and movements faltered. In a dizzying whirl, the world spun.
The next moment, he opened his eyes.
He stood in the same empty corridor, the broken window now perfectly restored.
"Something's wrong. This is real."
The tactile sensation and physical reality confirmed it wasn't an illusion.
Yet, even with his Mystic Eyes fully active, he couldn't discern what had happened. What was going on?
Looking up, he saw only the ordinary ceiling.
"Kid, don't be so tense. I mean no harm. Come to the rooftop; I have something to say."
A complex, unfamiliar voice echoed in his ears, bypassing all barriers.
Startled, Roy cast detection magic across the building, but despite its abnormality, his senses found nothing amiss, as if it were just an ordinary structure.
Unable to detect, escape, or destroy...
This building was a cage, imprisoning him like a bird.
Such a vexing situation gave Roy a headache.
Despite his efforts, he couldn't find any anomaly in the structure.
If he couldn't even identify the anomaly, escape was impossible.
What kind of work was this? Such a bizarre, almost sinister phenomenon was a first for him.
Its composition was more stable and stranger than even a Reality Marble.
It didn't seem like something from this world.
Yog-Sothoth?
An entity not of this planet, capable of such feats, Roy's mind instantly turned to the Outer God from this morning.
Had it come to ambush him?
But the unseen manipulator gave no chance to question.
As Roy debated heading to the rooftop as instructed, another odd sound reached his ears.
Tick!!
The sound wasn't loud, yet it pierced his ears, echoing in his mind.
Like a die landing, its clarity came from a nearby direction.
The moment he heard it, Roy's thoughts halted instinctively. The sound, like a bewitching melody, carried an undeniable significance, impossible to ignore.
Before he could react, the world spun again. An unheralded force seized him, dragging him to a corner without warning.
A massive iron door stood sealed. Beyond it, the corridor revealed nothing, everything unchanged.
Yet, behind that door, leading to the rooftop, something lurked. A vast, terrifying presence coiled in the depths, its scale and power incomprehensible, capable of annihilating anything on this planet with a flick of its hand.
No premonition was needed; the truth was laid bare.
Something was there, in the depths, and it was unmistakably after him.
"What the hell..."
Frowning deeply, Roy muttered complaints.
"Not even a moment to prepare or a chance to refuse? Really...?"
In this dire situation, the other party offered no choice.
Caught in this bind, all he could do was try to escape, then face it.
"Fine, let's see what you want."
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