7:30 p.m.
Shidou was staggering forward along the dimly lit street.
"So tired…"
In the end, thanks to the *help* of his "good friends" Demachi and the others, Shidou was unable to overturn their decision to make him an executive committee member for the school festival. He was practically forced to accept the job and join them in handling the upcoming workload.
After enduring overwhelming pressure and responsibilities, Shidou trudged along under the twilight sky—his right hand holding his schoolbag, and his left swinging a shopping bag he had just bought from the nearby shopping district instead of the usual supermarket.
During the Ten'ou Festival, crowds from both inside and outside the city would gather, and naturally the nearby shopping street became even more lively.
In fact, aside from New Year's season, it was the most profitable time of the year.
Seeing the colorful Ten'ou Festival posters plastered all over the walls around him, Shidou let out a faint smile.
All things considered, this kind of event really was a big advantage for the Itsuka family.
On the way home, he met Yoshino—wearing her straw hat as she came to pick him up—and the two returned together.
"I'm home—"
With both hands occupied, Shidou asked Yoshino to open the door for him. After placing his things down at the entrance, just as he was taking off his shoes—
"You're late!"
Along with that shout, a clean flying kick shot straight into Shidou's chest.
"W–wait—!"
The sudden attack sent Shidou crashing onto his butt. Holding his aching chest, he got back up and found a black-haired girl with a ribbon—his sister—standing before him with a scowl.
"W-What was that for… suddenly attacking me like that?"
"Don't 'what' me. Why are you coming home this late?"
Shidou scratched his cheek awkwardly. He did come home a bit late, but it wasn't even 8 p.m. yet.
"I was suddenly appointed as a festival executive committee member, so work ran a little long."
"Executive committee…? Well, that's fine then."
For some reason, Kotori let out a relieved sigh upon hearing his explanation.
"...You didn't suddenly feel sick or anything weird happen on the way back, right?"
"Eh?"
Shidou blinked. Why would Kotori suddenly ask something like that?
"…Nothing. Forget it. More importantly—why did you make Yoshino go pick you up? It's already sunset."
"That's not it, I just—"
He was about to argue, but suddenly a thought flashed in his mind and he swallowed his words.
"No, you're right. Sorry. I'll be more careful next time."
He stopped Yoshino—who had tried to defend him—and went back to his room by himself.
Though today was a rare exception, ever since last month when he returned from the school trip after sealing the Yamai sisters, Kotori had been acting somewhat strange.
She seemed normal most of the time, but whenever Shidou showed signs of fatigue, she became unusually agitated.
And he had no idea why.
Just then, Shidou noticed the living room door slightly ajar—and from the gap, a pair of eyes were quietly watching him.
It was Kotori, who should have disappeared behind the door earlier.
"Wh-What is it? Did you need something?"
Right after he spoke, a cute growling sound—*gurururu*—came from behind the door.
"…"
Kotori's cheeks flushed red. Shidou placed his schoolbag down and let out a relaxed sigh.
"Do you want something to eat?"
"…Hamburger steak."
…
After some fussing around, everything settled down. Kotori let out a deep breath and sank into the sofa. In a volume too quiet for Tohka and the others to hear, she muttered:
"You really need to be more careful… things are getting messier and more troublesome."
"More complicated?"
"Yeah… Though we have dangerous individuals like Tenqi Sanluo to worry about, the biggest problem right now is still Phantom."
"Huh? What's that? A Spirit codename?"
"It's that person who appeared before us five years ago. Since it's inconvenient not having a way to refer to her, we decided in the last meeting to give her a codename—though it's still debated whether she's even a real Spirit."
Five years ago—
The one who granted Kotori her Spirit powers, sealed away both her and Shidou's memories, and whose true nature—whether she was even a Spirit—remained completely unknown.
Indeed, she had always been an unresolved issue, especially since they knew absolutely nothing about her.
"And the other problem… is *that company*."
"DEM…?"
That was what happened last month. During the school trip to the island, Shidou encountered the twin Spirits—Yamai Kaguya and Yamai Yuzuru.
While trying to seal them, he was attacked by the magician Ellen Mathers, CR-Unit-wielding mechanical dolls, and even a massive airship.
The culprit behind that attack was DEM—Deus Ex Machina Industries.
Though they operated in many fields, their roots lay in military technology—they were essentially a high-end weapons manufacturer.
Even though it's not publicly disclosed, DEM was also the producer of the AST's Realizer units.
"So Shidou, you *must* protect yourself. DEM won't just let this go."
Kotori's expression was unusually serious as she spoke.
"Y-Yeah… I know…"
"And as for Tenqi Sanluo, you need to be careful too. Even though she hasn't shown up in Tenguu City these past two months—"
Kotori suddenly pulled out a laptop from who-knows-where, typing rapidly before replaying a recording of Tenqi Sanluo slaughtering countless people in another city.
"This is…?"
"You can see for yourself—Tenqi Sanluo hasn't changed at all. And from the footage in the park, she clearly intended to kill you. If Tokisaki Kurumi hadn't stepped in to stop her, your head would've been blown open!"
"…"
Shidou stayed silent, watching the recorded scene of that day in the park.
"Shidou, seriously—give up on trying to seal Tenqi Sanluo. She's beyond saving. Honestly, sealing Kurumi would be *more* realistic than her, at least—"
"Kotori, I don't think so."
Shidou cut her off. That in itself was extremely rare.
"Shidou…?"
Kotori tilted her head, expression darkening.
Shidou took a deep breath—like he had resolved something.
"Kotori… just like I said two months ago—please let me become stronger. Strong enough that I won't need to rely on Tohka and the others all the time."
Indeed, he had proposed becoming stronger two months ago, shortly after the date with Kotori.
His goal was clear: to safely and effectively seal Spirits.
But nearly everyone aboard *Fraxinus* rejected the idea.
According to most crew members, Shidou's job was to seal Spirits, not to become strong. With Ratatoskr backing him, he didn't need strength. And with so much Spirit power sealed inside him, they absolutely could not risk letting him manipulate spiritual energy on his own—if he lost control, the results could be catastrophic.
Among them, Kotori and Reine were the most firmly opposed. The others simply echoed them.
"Shidou, I already told you—your job is—"
"If I don't have enough power, Tenqi will never acknowledge me. I'll never be able to seal her."
"Shidou, get a grip!"
Kotori grabbed his ear in frustration.
"Just give up on Tenqi Sanluo! And besides—right, you can manifest Tohka's Angel *Sandalphon*, right? With a Spirit's Angel, you already have enough strength to protect yourself! There's no need to chase after power—"
"Kotori, I—"
*WEEEOOOO—WEEEOOOO—WEEEOOOO—*
Just as Shidou tried to continue, a shrill alarm cut him off, the glass windows of the living room trembling.
A spacequake alert.
Kotori instantly stood up, straightening her skirt and brushing past Shidou.
"We'll talk later—work first."
She pulled out a lollipop from the holster-like holder strapped inside her skirt, ripped the wrapper off, and popped it into her mouth in one swift motion.