"Heart to heart…?" Erika asked the question telepathically as she veered sharply through the air. "What does that even mean?"
Selena's voice answered immediately, calm as ever.
"Just try talking to him. Reach out to his heart. Wake him up."
"…Are you sure that'll work?" Erika asked.
"It usually works in movies," Selena replied. "So, we just have to try it."
Erika took a deep breath and steadied herself just as Akira lunged at her. The air cracked as claws sliced through the space where she'd been a second earlier. She spread her wings and shot upward, taking off into the air once more.
She knew it very well; if she let him close in, she'd be completely overwhelmed by his speed. So she kept her distance, weaving through the vast corridors of the Infinity Castle as Akira closed in relentlessly.
"Akira, wake up!" she shouted while dodging another strike. "Look, it's me!"
There was no response.
The werewolf didn't even hesitate. He simply continued attacking, leaping from wall to wall, chasing her with frightening precision.
"Come on, Akira, wake up!" Erika pleaded as she flew. "Everyone's worried about you!"
Still nothing.
"Akira!" she tried again, her voice shaking just slightly. "I know you're in there. Just listen to my voice. Come back!"
No matter what she said, there was no reaction. He only kept lunging at her, eyes burning with feral intensity.
Then, in desperation, the words slipped out.
"Akira… did you forget me? I'm your…your…"
She froze mid-sentence.
"Your what?Friends? Childhood friends? What am I supposed to say?"
Before she could spiral any further, Selena's voice cut in sharply.
"Erika-chan, you can think about that later. Focus on the fight first."
She snapped back to reality just in time to dodge another swipe.
"So, talking nicely doesn't work…"
Seeing that none of it was working, her frustration finally boiled over.
"HEY, AKIRA!" she shouted angrily. "If you don't come back right now, I'll tell your mother you're bullying me!"
That did it.
For just a moment, only a heartbeat, the werewolf froze.
Panic flashed across his face. A very human kind of panic. For an instant, it looked like Akira's consciousness surfaced, with a look that very clearly screamed, Are you insane?! I will die!
Then it vanished.
The feral glare returned, and he lunged at her again.
Erika blinked. "That… got a reaction," she muttered while narrowly escaping another attack.
Selena sighed. "Well, I guess fear is stronger than love after all."
Akira bounded from wall to wall, relentlessly chasing the flying Erika. She did her best to dodge, but even she could feel it; she couldn't keep this up forever. Werewolf Akira was simply too strong.
"I can't do this all day…" she thought grimly.
She spoke telepathically again. "Selena, it didn't work. What next?"
"Well…" Selena replied thoughtfully. "Something like singing a childhood song from a cherished memory might calm him down?"
Erika nearly crashed into a pillar. "I don't think he has a song like that, and I am absolutely not in a situation to sing!"
"Don't worry," Selena said brightly. "I'll play it through the system. We just need to pick the song. Any ideas?"
Erika thought for a moment. "…If there's an important song, I think it's only that one."
Selena paused. "Yeah… that might work."
A moment later, music suddenly blared from Erika's system.
[Pokémon Theme – "Gotta Catch 'Em All"]
I wanna be the very best, like no one ever was…
The Pokémon theme blasted through the Infinity Castle.
Yes. That Pokémon theme.
They genuinely could not think of anything else.
To catch them is my real test, to train them is my cause…
The result?
Absolutely nothing.
Akira didn't even flinch. The only effect was that the battle now had a wildly mismatched background soundtrack.
"…This is ridiculous," Erika muttered while dodging another attack.
Then she frowned. "Hey, Selena… isn't Akira's movement a bit weird? Like he's not really trying that hard?"
She kept flying, dodging, and weaving as she spoke, but she was starting to realize something.
The werewolf wasn't attacking her to kill.
He wasn't trying to tear her apart.
He was chasing her. Trying to catch her.
Selena noticed it too. "Well… My brother never wanted to hurt you. His berserk state is still active, but… I think he's just trying to catch you. Still, don't get too close."
Erika blushed faintly, warmth spreading through her chest. Even in his current state, Akira still wasn't trying to hurt her, and that realization softened her heart. Yet she had no idea how to bring him back. As she sadly turned over other possibilities in her mind, a song that completely mismatched the situation continued to play in the background.
Pokémon!
Gotta catch 'em all…
It's you and me
I know it's my destiny…
Erika then let out a long sigh.
"…I don't think this is working," she said quietly. "Is there any other way to get him to his senses?"
Selena was silent for a brief moment.
"Well…" she finally said, "there is one last method we can try."
Erika's eyes widened slightly as she twisted through the air to avoid another swipe.
"Really…What is it?"
"Use your Sacred Gear," Selena replied. "Synchronize your heart with the Sacred Gear in his heart. Then talk to him directly, heart to heart."
"…I don't know how to do that," Erika said immediately.
Selena answered without hesitation. "Remember that night? When you were crying because his heart was missing? Akira synchronized your heartbeat with his Sacred Gear. Just do what he did."
Erika's mind flashed back to that night.
Her face heated instantly, a faint red creeping up her cheeks even in the middle of battle.
"…I still don't know how to do that," she muttered.
Selena said calmly. "The best thing you can dois hug him and try to activate your Sacred Gear. It's fully awakened now. I'm sure you can do it."
Erika nearly lost control of her flight.
"Easy for you to say!" she snapped. "How am I supposed to get close enough to hug him?! I'll die!"
Sure, she knew Akira wasn't really trying to kill her, even now. But what if he suddenly decided to use her as a chew toy or something?!
Selena sounded almost amused. "Did you forget your powers? You're part vampire. You can create mist. And with your Blood Demon Art—Blindfold, you can turn invisible. Just sneak up behind him and hug him from the back or something. He won't immediately kill you."
Erika went quiet.
She dodged another attack, spun once in the air, and let out a long, resigned sigh.
Erika exhaled sharply. "Fine."
Erika closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, the blue within had vanished, replaced by a deep, glowing crimson.
In the next instant, thick mist erupted outward, swallowing the surrounding space of the Infinity Castle. Visibility dropped to almost nothing, the air growing cold and heavy as if the world itself had been submerged.
The werewolf froze for a split second.
Then it snarled.
Even blinded, even surrounded by fog, its senses were far from dulled. Its vision pierced through the haze, and its sense of smell immediately locked onto its target.
"Tch…!"
Erika didn't hesitate.
She activated her Blood Demon Art—Blindfold.
Her body vanished from sight completely.
But even then, the werewolf's head snapped sharply in her direction.
Too strong… his sense of smell is still too strong!
Erika reached into her inventory midair, pulling out everything she could grab, small bottles, vials, containers, and shattered them with sharp flicks of her fingers.
Glass burst apart.
Sharp, clashing scents exploded outward all at once.
Perfume.
Herbs.
Smoke.
Oil.
Everything hit the air simultaneously, a chaotic storm of smells designed to overwhelm even a monster's senses.
The werewolf staggered, head jerking violently from side to side as it snarled in confusion.
Now!
Erika didn't waste the opening.
She sprinted.
Then leapt.
She landed squarely on his back, arms locking tightly around his neck as her crimson ribbons snapped out instantly. They wrapped around his torso, crossed over his chest, looped around his arms, and tightened with a sharp pull.
She pressed herself flush against him, her body firmly anchored to his back.
Like a backpack.
The werewolf roared and thrashed violently, staggering as claws scraped uselessly against his own bindings, gouging the stone beneath his feet but failing to reach her.
"Now!" Erika shouted.
"Synchronize!"
Her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might burst from her chest.
Erika forced herself to focus inward.
Past the chaos.
Past the fear.
She reached for the presence she knew was there—Lunar Vows, the sacred gear, her sacred gear that's inside Akira's body.
Just like he had done before.
Just like that night.
Synchronize.
She steadied her breathing, aligning her pulse, her rhythm, her very existence with his. Slowly, painfully slowly, a connection formed.
Then.
Thump.
She heard it.
Her heartbeat.
Not in her own chest, but also from him.
The moment the connection stabilized, she let out a soft gasp.
"I did it…" she whispered, then hurriedly asked, "Selena, what do I do next?"
Selena's voice came immediately, calm but urgent.
"Talk. Talk with everything you've got. Like Naruto with his talk-no-jutsu."
Erika almost laughed despite herself. "Why were these siblings always like this? But…Fine…"
She swallowed, tightening her arms around him as the werewolf struggled violently. His movements were still powerful, but now, there was hesitation. The feral rage wavered, just a little.
"Akira…" she said softly.
"Can you hear me?"
The werewolf growled, trying to shake her off, but his movements slowed, unsteady, conflicted.
"It's me, Erika." Erika pressed on. "I'm your… I'm your Erika."
Her voice trembled.
"We can decide what we are when you come back. So please… come back. Please."
The massive body beneath her shuddered.
The werewolf's movements slowed further, claws scraping against the floor as if fighting something inside itself.
But it still wasn't enough.
He wasn't turning back.
Her grip tightened.
"If you come back," she continued, voice firm despite the fear, "I'll stay with you. I don't care how many times you mess up or how many stupid things you do. I'll always be with you."
The werewolf staggered.
Its breathing grew uneven.
The struggle inside him became visible, raw, painful, desperate.
Then.
Erika delivered the finishing blow.
She leaned forward, hugging his massive wolf head tightly, pressing her forehead against his fur, and whispered.
"But if you don't come back… I'll be sad… and I'll cry."
Then.
Something inside him stirred.
A memory surfaced through the haze of rage and instinct.
A promise.
He had promised Erika that he would never let her be sad and never let her cry.
He had already broken that promise once.
He couldn't do it again.
Not this time.
The werewolf's violent struggles slowed.
The deep purple glow burning in its eyes flickered… then dimmed.
His white fur began to recede, dissolving back into skin.
Claws shortened, reshaping into human fingers.
Bones cracked and shifted as the monstrous frame shrank, realigning into something familiar.
The transformation reversed.
When it ended, Akira collapsed to one knee, human once more.
His clothes were intact, his uniform seamlessly restored by Selena's design, as if the nightmare had never happened.
"Akira!" Erika shouted, still hanging onto his back, joy flooding her voice. "You're back!"
Akira blinked.
Once.
Twice.
He looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers as if confirming they were real.
Then he tilted his head slightly and asked, genuinely confused,
"…Why are you latched onto my back like a koala?"
Silence.
A vein popped on Erika's forehead.
The next thing Akira knew, an arm locked around his neck.
"YOU ALMOST DIED," she snarled, tightening the chokehold. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA…"
Akira frantically tapped the floor in surrender.
"I'M SORRY…I'M SORRY…I give up, I give up!"
He almost died again.
After a while, Akira sat on the floor in silence, head slightly lowered, breathing slowly and steadily. It took time, but eventually, he managed to digest the memories from when he had been a werewolf. Every blurred sensation, every instinct-driven movement, every moment when he'd nearly lost himself.
Erika watched him carefully.
"…How did it go?" she asked.
Akira looked up and nodded. "Yeah. I managed to get everything."
Erika exhaled in relief. "That's good."
Akira's expression shifted.
A smirk crept onto his face.
"So," he said casually, "was what you said true?"
Erika blinked. "What?"
He leaned back slightly, eyes sharp with amusement.
"About how we can decide what we are when I come back, or about how you said you'd always stay with me. No matter how many times I mess up. Or how many stupid things I do."
Erika froze.
Her face slowly turned red.
Without another word, she reached out and pressed both hands over his face, shoving it back.
"Shut up. Shut up. Shut up!" she snapped.
Akira's laughter only got louder.
After a bit, Erika pulled her hands away, her face still flushed. She turned aside, trying and failing, to sound calm.
"…Are you fine?" she asked. "Any side effects or something?"
Akira stretched his arms lightly. "Nah. I think I'm fine. The curse is already contained properly, so it's good."
"…Good," Erika said.
Then she narrowed her eyes.
"You told me you cured your lycanthropy," she said. "So why did you lie?"
Akira shook his head. "I didn't lie. I already cured it."
She frowned. "Then what was that?"
"That," Akira replied, "is just a copy. A very well-contained version. It only activates under specific circumstances."
Erika stared at him. "Then couldn't you have made it so you don't go berserk when you transform?"
Akira turned his face away.
"Well… I could have," he admitted. "But I thought losing control and going berserk once in a while is cool, sooo…"
"ARE YOU NUTS?!" Erika shouted. "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"
"Hehe… sorry about that," Akira said lightly. Then he added, with a grin,
"But hey, you did promise you'd stay with me no matter what stupid things I do, right?"
Erika turned beet red again.
Then she looked straight at him.
"Sure, but remember, your mother asked me to correct you if you do something stupid, right?" she continued. "So, if you do stupid things, I'll correct you. I even have permission to give you a beating from your mother and your sister. So be careful."
Akira stiffened. "Wait…sister too?"
Selena's voice echoed telepathically, far too calmly.
"Well, brother, someone needs to take care of you, right? We'll talk about that later. For now…what's our next move?"
Akira sighed. "Right. How's Muzan? Is he dead?"
"No," Selena replied. "He's alive. But I don't know where he is."
Akira's expression sharpened. "Then we need to find him. And we also need to figure out exactly what the Sacred Gear does."
Just then.
Their two Kasugai crows, Raven and Rose, swooped down.
"MUZAN FOUND! MUZAN FOUND!"
Akira sighed again. "Figures."
"Well," he said, standing up and offering his hand to Erika, "we can deal with everything after we defeat Muzan."
Erika took his hand and let him pull her to her feet.
"Yes," she said softly. "We have a lot to talk about after we finish this."
She smiled.
But even Akira could tell.
That smile didn't quite reach her eyes.