After an exhausting day, Leo Ash fell asleep the moment he returned to his room.
But before he drifted off, he vaguely remembered that there was something he hadn't finished. As a result, he woke up in the middle of the night.
"Let me think, what was it... Oh, I still need to go check on Rin."
Remembering this, Leo Ash immediately focused the energy in his body on his Stigmata, allowing himself to enter the Stigmata Space.
In this illusion, Rin, as a participant, had been surprisingly well-behaved and hadn't caused any major trouble.
Leo Ash didn't know if she was genuinely moved by his grand speech or if she had simply chosen to bide her time.
In the original story, Rin was only moved by Theresa after seeing her willingly forgive Otto.
That particular scene was enough to prove that Rin's heart hadn't been completely consumed by hatred yet.
It was for this reason that Leo Ash chose to say those words when the opportunity arose, attempting to dissolve the hatred in Rin's heart.
But he wasn't Theresa, after all. Some of what he said might have been sincere, but compared to Theresa forgiving Otto for causing Cecilia's death, the weight of his actions was...
Aigh, women are, as expected, so much trouble.
Although Rin had lived for fifty thousand years, she had spent most of that time sealed away. Who knew what she was really thinking.
*If she's still in a state of hating me—that would actually be the norm.*
*It was just an illusion; she hasn't truly found salvation.*
*After she comes to her senses, the 'me' who has left the illusion is no longer the warrior Leo Ash, and she is no longer the 'hero' Rin. Our relationship is, in fact, still that of mortal enemies.*
*I can't expect to go over now and see her turned into a dumpling, starting to shout 'Big Sister' at Yae Sakura.*
"Benefactor, you've come as expected."
Upon seeing Leo Ash's figure, Yae Sakura gave him a slight curtsy before turning to look at Rin behind her with a troubled expression.
"This child..."
"—Stop looking at me with those eyes, you imposter!"
Ah, so it's turned out like this after all.
Rin, still bound, stared with hatred at the troubled Yae Sakura and the calm Ji Lin, showing no signs of softening her attitude.
"Oh my, has the great leader come as well?"
Seeing Leo Ash arrive, a strange smile appeared on Rin's face.
"Ha, you don't think that just because you soothed me with a few nauseating lies in that illusion, I'd obediently listen to you, do you? Just like this woman here."
"Not necessarily."
"Heh, then you're not completely stupid..."
"However, those words weren't lies. I do genuinely believe that you are a hero who sealed the Herrscher of Corruption."
Looking at the girl before him, Leo Ash undid the seals on her and brought out two wooden chairs, gesturing for the still-confused Rin to sit down.
"Rin, have a seat."
"I've thought about it carefully. There's no need for things to be so tense."
"Whatever conditions you have, we can discuss them properly."
"Heh, how hypocritical."
Looking at the calm expression on Leo Ash's face, Rin, having collected herself, maintained her malicious smile. She sat down on a chair and stared at Leo Ash with ill intent.
"The person who sealed me in this Stigmata Space now wants to talk? Do you think I'd believe your nonsense?"
"First, let's get one thing straight—you were the one who used Sakura's body to ambush me. I was merely acting in self-defense."
"Second, as I said last time—you are to stay here and reflect on your actions."
"Now, the time is right. I don't think you need to target me with such malice."
Leaning back in his chair, Leo Ash spoke to Rin in a very relaxed manner.
"Of course, I personally understand why you still harbor malice towards me, but—you should first figure out what you plan to do."
"Destroy all of humanity after you get out? To be honest, humanity managed to capture you once fifty thousand years ago. Now that this era has inherited the technological level of the Previous Era, capturing you a second time will definitely be easier than before."
"It's a thankless task. Why bother?"
*How could you possibly understand how I feel*—Rin, who had wanted to roar this, suppressed the urge and was forced to start analyzing what Leo Ash had said.
Then, she came to a conclusion.
"You're lying! The technological level of this era is clearly inferior to that of fifty thousand years ago!"
"Saying that it'd be easier for humanity to capture me, you must be trying to scare me!"
"Oh, are you sure?"
Seeing the triumphant smile on Rin's face, Leo Ash replied very calmly.
"Five hundred years ago, you had a chance to possess a Valkyrie by taking advantage of the old Schicksal leadership's desire for power."
"Unfortunately for you, the woman you chose back then had the surname Kaslana. And the ancestor of the Kaslana clan is now known by his full name—Kevin Kaslana."
Yae Sakura, being an observer, only knew Kaslana as Kallen's surname and didn't understand who Kevin was.
But as someone from the same era as Kevin, Rin was certainly well aware of how terrifying that man was.
"And after that, Kallen, a successor of the Kaslanas, sealed you twice in a row."
"Add this time to the count, and I've sealed you too—you've been sealed three times in the last five hundred years. I'm very curious as to why you still think this era of ours is 'no good'."
"You, you, you—you and that woman are special cases!"
"Mm, that's true. People as awesome as me are indeed rare in this era."
"But—rare doesn't mean non-existent."
At that moment, Leo Ash took out two prepared photos from his storage space.
"Also, since we're on the subject of our esteemed predecessor Kallen, I have to mention someone else."
"This utterly wicked, golden-haired beast is named Otto Apocalypse."
"For now, he's my direct superior, but he has another identity."
"...I've seen this man before."
Recalling some memories from five hundred years ago, Rin spoke with venom.
"That man, listening to his father's words back then, was trying his best to release me from my seal... Tsk, so this guy is still alive too."
"Yes, not only is he alive, but you should also know that he and Kallen were very close—in fact, he was her fiancé."
"Now, if you were to get out, and Otto found out that the Herrscher who injured Kallen back then was on the move again—what do you think his twisted love for Kallen would drive him to do to you?"
"...Do you think these one-sided claims of yours can scare me?"
"Heh, if you're interested, I can show you the evidence."
Staring at the young girl before him, Leo Ash said with a smile.
"If you just want a physical body or want to get out for some fresh air, those aren't big problems."
"Oh?"
Looking at the smile on Leo Ash's face, Rin sneered irritably.
"Trying to win me over with this soft approach? Aren't you afraid I'll be uncontrollable once I'm out?"
"Of course not."
Taking out Jizō Mitama, Leo Ash saw Rin's eyes instantly fixate on the tachi she had 'willingly' handed over to him.
"Your core is in my hands. Right now, you're just a spiritual body with hardly any power."
"Without my help, no one else can even see you. Why do you think I should be afraid?"
To be honest, Leo Ash's words nearly angered Rin enough to make her jump up and beat him.
But considering his absolute superiority in strength, Rin, now weaker than before, could only choose to endure.
Besides, finding herself unable to win in a fight, Rin felt she had become much calmer than before.
If he had started lecturing her about 'love and peace', she would have been too lazy to listen.
But Leo Ash didn't say any of that boring stuff. Instead, he chose to approach it from a perspective of mutual benefit, forcing Rin to consider just how reliable his words were.
She still hated humanity, and her attitude...
—There's no way it would change because of a few words from Leo Ash in an illusion!
Impossible, absolutely impossible!
But even if she hated humanity, being locked in the Stigmata Space for so long made her occasionally want to go out for some fresh air.
"Well said. But isn't what you're thinking more important than what I'm thinking?"
Looking at the man before her and recalling his performance in the illusion, Rin suddenly retorted to Leo Ash.
"The [Warrior] Leo Ash is no fool who'd die from stupidity. You must want me to do something for you if you're willingly offering to let me out."
"Aigh, it's good that you've suddenly become sharp-witted."
"Are you calling me an idiot!"
"Don't be angry, don't be angry."
Looking at the suddenly agitated Rin, Leo Ash said softly.
"My request is actually very simple—just once. I only need you to lend me the power of your core once."
"Otto Apocalypse is indeed my direct superior right now, but at the same time, he has become a threat to my safety."
"As someone who's afraid of dying, I must find a way to kill him before he kills me. To do that, the power of the Key of Corruption is essential."
"How about it? After we get rid of this guy, the threat he poses to you will disappear as well—agreeing to this condition shouldn't be a bad thing for you, right?"
"...I'll think about it."
After saying this, Rin stood up from her chair.
"Heh, no rush. We still have plenty of time to show our sincerity to each other."
After saying this, Leo Ash looked at the complex expression on Yae Sakura's face and the wary Ji Lin, then said to the two of them.
"Ladies, there's no need to be overly concerned. I trust that Miss Rin can see the bigger picture."
Staring into Leo Ash's eyes, the two of them knew full well that his words were... rather diplomatic.
But as allies on Leo Ash's side, they certainly weren't going to expose their companion's white lie at a time like this.
After handling all matters, Leo Ash actively transferred a portion of his power to Rin.
This power wasn't enough for Rin to roam freely, but it was sufficient for her to operate around Leo Ash in her spiritual form.
"...You're serious."
Feeling the power within her, Rin said to Leo Ash, slightly surprised.
"You want to kill that Otto that badly?"
"Of course. To get rid of him, I need enough power to suppress him and enough trump cards."
After lightly patting Rin's shoulder, Leo Ash walked past her and said.
"Let's temporarily forget our past grievances."
"Getting rid of Otto is not a bad thing for either of us. I personally hope you will consider this proposal seriously."
"...Hmph, I understand. I will give your proposal serious consideration, [Warrior] Leo Ash."
As Leo Ash withdrew his power, his consciousness instantly returned to reality.
Then, the very moment he opened his eyes, Leo Ash saw Rin, in her spiritual form, appear right beside him.
*Mm, her power is still very weak. With her core taken from her, it's impossible for her to harm anyone else.*
Then, in the next instant, Leo Ash suddenly froze.
Some people who shouldn't have been there had appeared in his room.
*Wait, what's going on...*
*—Why are those two here?*
...
Several minutes earlier. Kiana's room.
In Kiana's room, Kiana, who should have been sound asleep in a terrible sleeping posture, suddenly woke up from her slumber with a start.
"Ha... ha... ha... ha..."
After taking several deep, gasping breaths, Kiana clutched her head, feeling a slight headache.
"Strange, what happened to me..."
"That dream just now... Damn it, why can't I remember the details."
In her dream, Kiana felt like she had gotten into a fight with someone.
But what was very strange was that the other person was unwilling to hurt her, so she ended up injuring them directly.
She couldn't remember the specific details anymore, but she just felt increasingly uncomfortable in the dream until she was shocked awake.
"That's weird. Have I... ever had nightmares before?"
Clutching her head, Kiana felt that she was now completely awake.
"And what's that sound?"
Hearing the faint footsteps from outside, Kiana suddenly frowned.
"That sound... someone went into Senior's room???"
*In the middle of the night, one of us definitely wouldn't just inexplicably... No, Class Rep would.*
*But it's not just Class Rep; enemies would too!*
*If everyone is asleep in the middle of the night, and the enemy uses the Quantum Teleportation System to launch a sneak attack, and they're planning to assassinate Senior...!*
*No, I can't just stay in my room and do nothing!*
*If it's Class Rep or someone else, it won't hurt for me to go take a look.*
*If it's an enemy, at least I can stop them from hurting Senior.*
*And, I can't make too much noise.*
*The enemy has just infiltrated the area near Senior's room. I have to follow without alerting them!*
With this thought, Kiana also made her move.
Stan, who had already been scared half to death, felt the oppressive aura continuously emanating from Kiana and began to tremble even more violently.
*Croak, why is the other one also sneaking towards the boss's room?!*
*Don't humans sleep at night?*
*And this aura, in a way, is even more terrifying than the one radiated by the Herrscher of Thunder!*
*Boss, it's not that I don't want to help you, the problem is... I really can't!* *It's too scary. I really don't want to stay in this place for another moment.*
*I'm moving!*
*I'm definitely applying for a new web!*
.......
Himeko's Home. Yuna's Room.
Yuna, in her room, had not actually been asleep.
After killing her nemesis, Yuna felt a complete sense of tranquility in her heart.
However, even with her heart completely at peace, Yuna still felt that she couldn't fall asleep today.
There were many reasons, but the biggest one was...
*—Mmm, it's probably because of Senior after all.*
*My problem is solved, but Senior's obsession is far more terrifying than mine.*
*If he continues like this, it's a certainty that something bad will happen.*
*But there's no solution, unless...*
*Ah, what's going on?*
Hearing the footsteps in the hallway, Yuna immediately got out of bed and placed her hand on the wooden floor of her room.
By utilizing the power of her Pseudo-Herrscher Core, Yuna, who had been diligently training her abilities, had long since developed new functions for it.
Now, as long as she placed her hand on the wooden floor, she could use the floor to 'see' and 'hear' everything happening outside.
As for why she was able to evolve this ability, she herself wasn't entirely sure.
But since she had learned the skill, there was no reason not to use it at a time like this.
As for Leo Ash's safety, Yuna herself wasn't worried.
In the entire dorm, he and Theresa were the strongest fighters. If an enemy were to really make a move on Leo Ash, Yuna felt that instead of worrying about his safety, one should worry about whether Leo Ash would punch the person to death for waking him up, thus losing a source of intelligence.
Then, after seeing what was happening in the hallway, Yuna felt that...
*Ah, I heard Kiana mention when she came back before that Class Rep has secretly gone to Senior's room at night.*
*Looking at it now, forget Class Rep—Kiana, Mei, you two are really impatient.*
*Launching a night raid in the middle of the night, this, this, this...*
Thinking about the inevitable chaos that would ensue, Yuna decisively decided it was best for her not to get involved.
After confronting her own heart, Yuna had to admit that she definitely had feelings for Leo Ash.
But having feelings for him didn't mean she had to reject others who also had feelings for him.
Everyone was a good person, and she felt it was unnecessary to make the atmosphere awkward between everyone because of this matter.
Moreover, if these things were happening around him, would Leo Ash, who valued his comrades, be happy that people were fighting over him?
Based on Yuna's understanding of Leo Ash, she felt he would most likely just get a headache from it.
*Aigh, I'd better just watch this as a bystander.*
*Senior, the reason things have turned out this way is, in the end, because your own charm is too high and you don't deal with these matters.*
*I can't help you with this, you...*
*—You're on your own.*
.....
After walking into Leo Ash's room, Mei's body completely froze.
To be sure, Mei, who had acted on a whim, thought she was mentally prepared before stepping into the room.
But when she looked at Leo Ash's peaceful sleeping face, Mei began to question whether what she was doing was right.
[You're telling me you're going to chicken out now??? Coward! What are you doing!]
*But, I—this is too shameless!*
[Wait, hold on, I just wanted you to confess to him. I never intended for you to jump his bones.]
[How did you even imagine things to that extent...]
*You, you, you—you didn't make it clear!*
[You're the one who was overthinking it. I, for one, would like to ask—why is a coward like you so bold in this particular aspect.]
At the thought of how far her imagination had strayed, Mei instantly felt the temperature of her face rise considerably.
[You—if even confessing and kissing is this hard for you, how do you expect to spend the rest of your life with him?]
*But, Leo Ash is asleep. It's not right to wake him up at this time...*
[You didn't think of that before you came? You're a beautiful girl. It's his gain to have a beautiful girl visit him for a rendezvous in the middle of the night. Why would you think he'd be unwilling?]
*But, this...*
[This and that, you're dithering.]
[Fine, let me do it. I'll show you how it's done!]
Mei suddenly felt her Herrscher Core begin to spin wildly.
Caught off guard, the Herrscher of Thunder actually managed to seize control of her body this time.
[You—you can't hurt Leo Ash!]
*Give me a break. I've said it before, I will defeat him fair and square.*
*Hmph, coward. If you won't do it, then let me help you complete this task.*
*Dilly-dallying even when it comes to waking him up. You really are useless.*
After scolding Mei, the Herrscher of Thunder strode towards Leo Ash, and then...
[So, why have you stopped moving too?]
*Shut up! I'm just preparing myself!*
[Um, isn't this supposed to be simple for you?]
Seeing that the Herrscher of Thunder had stopped at the final step, Mei was completely relieved.
[See, you weren't ready either. This means you also feel that this is indeed inappropriate...]
*Shut up! You dare to look down on me?*
*Then I'll do it right now and show you!*
Having completely mustered her courage, the Herrscher of Thunder was ready to get close to Leo Ash.
But in the instant before she took that final step—
"Mei?"
Mei and the Herrscher of Thunder both heard the gasp from the doorway at the same time.
"What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"
Kiana, standing at the door, watched as her best friend suddenly turned to face her. In her lightning-laced eyes, there was a clear hint of annoyance mixed with a slight sense of relief.
Then, as if she had suddenly become a different person, she reverted to her usual gentle demeanor.
"Kiana, I, I, I... I was just fighting with the Herrscher of Thunder!"
[You're actually pinning the blame on me!]
"She took control of my body while I was off guard and came to Leo Ash's room."
[Hey! You did this yourself!]
*Shut up! If you hadn't tempted me, I would never have done something so shameless today!*
[You—I could just die from anger!]
"Ah? Is that so?"
Seeing the look of relief on Mei's face, Kiana believed her, albeit with some doubt.
After all, Mei was usually such a gentle and easily embarrassed good girl.
How could someone like her possibly come to Leo Ash's room in the middle of the night to raid him?
At that moment, Mei, who had successfully deceived Kiana, and Kiana, who had successfully deceived herself, both let out a long sigh of relief at the same time.
And then...
"I say, Mei, Kiana."
Upon hearing the voice from behind Mei, both of their bodies froze simultaneously.
Behind Mei, the awakened Leo Ash was looking at them and asked softly.
"What are you two doing here in the middle of the night? Is there something you need?"