Back in the Jujutsu Kaisen world, Makoto had already learned from Chen Guohao that Story Characters with high Fate Value could become prey.
Later, he discovered that Fate Value could also serve as a last-resort means of overturning a hopeless situation, but he still hadn't understood exactly how Story Characters were hunted.
Now everything was clear.
Fate Value could also be used as nourishment for certain items. Once the Cursed Eyes of Milim Nava were fully unsealed, the person hiding behind everything would probably appear to collect them.
As for why that person was so certain the eyes wouldn't be lost after implanting them into Sakiko, that wasn't something Makoto needed to speculate about right now.
If he remembered correctly, Milim Nava possessed Demon Lord-level combat power, and her greatest displays of strength had even surpassed the galaxy level.
Someone capable of arranging something involving that degree of power was far beyond Makoto's current ability to investigate.
Fortunately, while he wasn't qualified to investigate the mastermind, he was qualified to alter the eyes themselves.
They were only an SS-rank Item.
Making Fake Become Real was SSS-rank.
The remaining question was how exactly he should alter them.
Destroying the eyes outright was definitely inappropriate. In fact, Makoto didn't even want to change them too drastically.
For one thing, although the eyes carried tremendous danger, they also gave Sakiko enormous power. If she someday truly mastered that strength, Makoto might end up needing her protection instead.
More importantly, he couldn't be sure whether the mastermind was using some method to constantly monitor whether the eyes remained under control.
The later parts of the item's description were far too abnormal. It practically screamed that Sakiko was never supposed to truly possess the eyes.
The last time Makoto had seen an item description this unreasonable was Sukuna's Finger.
But Sukuna's Finger was special because it was a World-class Item tied to the progression of an entire world.
The Cursed Eyes of Milim Nava weren't ranked highly enough to justify such special treatment. Their abnormal properties had clearly been forcibly elevated through some external method.
Rapidly unsealing the eyes also looked possible, but Makoto didn't believe that he and Sakiko currently possessed enough strength or knowledge to defeat whoever appeared afterward, even with Making Fake Become Real.
No matter how powerful his Talent was, Makoto still needed a chance to speak.
Against an enemy beyond galaxy level, he would probably be reduced to ash along with the entire planet beneath his feet before he even saw them.
Makoto, Sakiko, and Yukino all needed more time to grow.
And that growth didn't refer only to raw strength.
They also needed a far deeper understanding of the Main God Space and of what truly powerful beings were capable of.
The mere existence of these eyes proved that three Players who were, at most, around Veteran level hadn't even touched the tip of the Main God Space's iceberg.
With that thought, Makoto gradually formed a plan.
While he considered everything seriously, Sakiko quietly watched his profile with gentle eyes, as though trying to memorize every detail about him.
She had already poured out all the suffering she'd endured, and Makoto was as dependable as she'd remembered.
Sakiko didn't truly believe he could solve the problem, but simply watching him calmly search for an answer eased much of the tension in her heart.
Most importantly, even after facing Sakiko's temptation, Makoto had still chosen to think first about how to help her. Though Sakiko had personally felt that Makoto was not without desire, compared to satisfying physical pleasure, he cared far more about her life and death.
For a moment, Sakiko felt as though she'd returned to the Jujutsu Kaisen world, when simply staying beside Makoto had been enough to fill her with Rainbow Happiness.
"Sakiko, I'm going to do something next. I need you to trust me completely. Don't overthink it, and don't ask too many questions. Can you do that?"
Makoto had finally made his decision.
Sakiko smiled faintly.
"All right."
At this point, she felt that even if Makoto asked her to face death directly, she could probably accept it.
"You belong to a Guild too, right? Can you leave its territory now?"
Sakiko nodded.
"My Guild is called Spaceship. Its territory is a gigantic warship drifting through space."
Makoto's heart tightened.
For a moment, he'd assumed Guild territories might be completely isolated from one another.
Sakiko's next explanation immediately reassured him.
"I tried leaving the territory before. The system said I could leave, but I can't enter the Public Space directly."
"In that situation, you either have to use a teleportation route connecting friendly Guilds, or accept another Veteran's invitation and use Fixed-Point Teleportation."
"Opening a teleportation gate costs 10,000 Mission Points each time. That's more than I can afford right now..."
Makoto glanced toward Sakiko's eyes with a strange expression, then stopped himself from saying anything.
She obviously understood what he was thinking.
Sakiko lightly touched the corner of one eye and gave a bitter smile.
"These eyes are extremely powerful. As long as I'm angry, I have what feels like an almost unlimited supply of magical energy."
"But the price is that my rationality rapidly deteriorates."
"So I can kill the enemy, but I usually cause damage I can't control. That's why my mission rewards have always been poor."
Makoto nodded.
This kind of overwhelming power wasn't something Sakiko should have possessed at her current stage in the first place.
The mastermind had probably understood those side effects from the beginning, which was precisely why they could leave Sakiko alone and let her gradually nurture the eyes for them.
"Kitano-kun, I'm not asking you to solve this for me."
Sakiko took the initiative to comfort Makoto, though a trace of resolute determination flashed deep within her eyes.
"Being able to meet you again and learning that you didn't forget me is already enough."
Makoto shook his head.
"I'll solve the Invitation problem. We're starting right now, and you need to meet me in the Main God Space today."
Seeing how firm he was, Sakiko finally nodded despite having little hope.
If Makoto wanted to try, then she would try with him once.
Even if they failed, she could still return to this room afterward and spend whatever happy time she had left with him.
"I'm going back to the Main God Space first to find out exactly how this works. If everything goes smoothly, I'll come back."
"Wait here patiently for me."
After saying that, Makoto's body gradually faded from Sakiko's sight.
A moment later, he appeared inside Yukino's personal room.
Yukino was wearing a sports bra and tight yoga pants, warming up, her face carrying a healthy flush from exercise. The instant she saw Makoto, she realized something was wrong and hurried over.
"Makoto-kun, did something happen?"
Makoto nodded.
"I met the teammate from my Jujutsu Kaisen mission in my world. She only has 1 Fate Value left."
"And more importantly, she's already experienced four Mission Worlds while I've only completed my second. Have you ever encountered anything like that?"
Yukino's expression immediately became serious.
After thinking silently for a moment, she shook her head.
"I've never encountered a second Player in my own world. In fact, I've never even encountered the same enemy twice across separate missions."
"My former teammates also experienced time at the same rate as one another, so I'm sorry. I can't give you an answer."
Makoto nodded.
He hadn't expected much on that front anyway.
Still, one thing was becoming increasingly obvious.
Manipulating time clearly wasn't especially difficult for the Main God Space. Different Players experiencing asynchronous time flows might be completely ordinary from its perspective.
If Makoto hadn't somehow drawn Sakiko into his own world, then by the next time they met, one of them might already have died of old age.
That thought suddenly gave Makoto another idea.
'Should I bring Yukino into my world too?'
He quickly suppressed the thought.
For now, they were essentially a semi-fixed team, and there hadn't been any sign that their personal time flows were diverging.
Yukino's home world also lacked supernatural powers and was extremely safe.
Dragging her into the dangerous world of A Certain Magical Index might actually put her in greater danger instead.
"Makoto-kun, is there something you want to do?"
Yukino stepped closer and took his hand.
"If it's something you've decided to do, I'll help."
She could tell from Makoto's words that the teammate he was talking about was a girl.
But Yukino wasn't thinking about romance right now.
Having watched teammates die one after another, she understood better than most that a dependable companion mattered far more than a little emotional discomfort.
Besides, in a place like the Main God Space, having more trustworthy teammates meant everyone had a better chance of surviving.
Staying alive mattered more than anything else.
Makoto looked down at Yukino's hand with mild surprise.
Although they had already been naked together in Yukino's Jinzen space, once they returned to the Main God Space, they had kept a close but not intimate distance.
Makoto hadn't paid much attention to it before.
Now Yukino was the one who had crossed that small distance first.
He didn't hesitate and gently held her hand.
"There's danger hidden in what I'm asking you to help with. I need to explain that first."
Makoto then told her about Sakiko's situation and the problem with her eyes.
He didn't reveal the exact details of the curse.
Instead, he explained only that the eyes could cause Sakiko to lose control through anger, making it extremely difficult for her to consistently complete Main God Space missions properly.
Hearing Makoto explicitly confirm that the teammate was a girl, while making no effort to hide how close he was to her, caused Yukino's smile to become slightly strained.
She'd thought she'd acted quickly enough with Makoto.
After all, she'd made her move immediately after his first completed mission.
Yet apparently, even as the late-arriving heroine, she still had to deal with the classic childhood-friend hurdle surrounding the protagonist.
That light-novel-like thought lasted only a moment before Yukino pushed it aside.
Saving Sakiko came first.
Then they needed to bring her into the team.
Once Yukino considered that Sakiko might someday possess galaxy-level potential, even someone who had already mastered Bankai couldn't possibly treat her as an enemy.
Of course, when it came to romance, strength couldn't decide everything...
'No. Why am I thinking about this again? I should be worrying about getting stronger.'
"Yukino, you've visited quite a few Guilds before, right? Can you tell me exactly how this works?"
Yukino immediately refocused.
"I originally reached this Guild by following the Fixed-Point Teleportation routes between Guilds."
"I also know how to send an Invitation, so you can relax."
Relief appeared on Makoto's face.
If Yukino hadn't known, he probably would've had no choice but to go out and purchase the information.
Makoto didn't mind spending Mission Points.
He was only worried that he might not have enough.
"Thank you, Yukino."
Yukino stepped back.
"Save the thanks until everything is finished. I'll change clothes and go get an Invitation. If everything goes smoothly, it shouldn't take very long."
Soon afterward, Yukino changed into her school uniform and left the personal room.
Yet she didn't return for an entire hour.
There was still a smile on her face when she came back, but Makoto immediately noticed that it looked stiff.
"What happened?"
"Nothing..."
"Yukino, we agreed to trust each other."
Yukino finally sighed in frustration.
"That damned Tavern ripped me off."
She handed him the Invitation.
"This would normally cost only 20,000 Mission Points. They realized I was in a hurry and forced me to add a C-rank Side Mission Token."
Makoto's eyebrows rose.
Before he could say anything, Yukino immediately continued.
"Don't get angry over it. Suddenly raising the price is one of the least offensive tricks you'll encounter in the Main God Space."
"Besides, I don't have any immediate use for a C-rank Side Mission Token at my current strength."
She smiled again.
"Worst case, I'll make Sakiko-san pay me back later."
Seeing her smile return, Makoto could only suppress his irritation and accept the Invitation.
He was about to thank her properly, but a finger pressed against Makoto's lips. A faint fragrance came from her, different from the scent on Sakiko's lips, yet equally heart-pounding.
"You don't need to thank me. Not for something like this."
"Go. I want to meet Sakiko-san as soon as possible too."
Makoto nodded.
He didn't hesitate any longer, and his figure quickly disappeared from in front of Yukino.
Only after he was gone did Yukino seem to lose all her strength.
She collapsed onto the sofa, hugged one of her plush toys, and muttered quietly to herself.
"I miscalculated... I think I've been way too reserved these past few days."
Before long, Makoto appeared in the real world again.
Before he could say anything, a warm, soft figure had already burrowed into his arms, and gentle lips kissed him once more.
Makoto was already familiar with this feeling. He held Sakiko's shoulder with one hand, waiting until she released the tension and unease in her heart, before speaking amid her complaints that an hour was too long.
"I got the Invitation. Let's begin."
Only then did genuine hope finally appear in Sakiko's eyes.
She tightened her arms around Makoto's waist and held on.
…