It was impossible for Azlan to leave her alone here. Even without the threat of Titans and Zombies, within a few hours, Mirai would surely die from freezing. Moreover, aside from the jacket he gave her, the girl was only wearing thin swimwear completely unsuitable for Tokyo's winter.
There was no other choice.
Without much ado, Azlan bent down and lifted Mirai in a princess carry. The girl was light, her body still shivering.
Before Mirai could protest or ask further, blue light wings from Divine Dividing spread from Azlan's back, and they soared into the air at a speed that made her breath catch.
"That—"
Just as Mirai opened her mouth, fascinated yet frightened by the sensation of flying, Azlan had already interrupted her. His voice sounded calm in her ears, clearly audible despite the strong wind.
"I know there are many things you want to ask. That's a standard reaction every time I find a survivor." Azlan glanced at the girl in his embrace briefly. "Before that, let me ask first. You don't mind, do you, Mirai?"
"Mm."
Wrapping her arms more tightly around Azlan's neck for balance and warmth, Mirai could only nod weakly. Her mind was still spinning, a mixture of gratitude, coldness, and deep confusion.
"By the way, how old are you?"
There was no hidden meaning, Azlan was just curious. Mirai appeared to be around Akane's age.
"I'm 17 years old. Is there something wrong with that?" Mirai answered honestly, slightly confused.
"Three years older than me, huh..." Azlan murmured, more to himself.
"I see. Azlan-kun is 15 years old." Mirai concluded, catching his murmur.
"You're one year younger than Sekai."
"Sekai?"
"Oh, he's my younger brother."
However, when her younger brother was mentioned in their conversation, Mirai's expression suddenly became gloomy. Her thoughts drifted to her brother. She didn't know how Sekai would react knowing she had disappeared. Worry for her brother enveloped her.
Noticing the sudden change in her mood, Azlan quickly changed the topic of conversation.
"Next question. Why are you only wearing underwear?"
Hearing that, Mirai immediately jerked.
"I already said this is a swimsuit!"
Mirai puffed out her cheeks glaring at him sullenly, embarrassment and annoyance mixed.
"Oh."
"Haaah... Never mind, it's true that swimsuits and underwear aren't that different. The difference lies in the mindset and perception of the person viewing it."
One indifferent word from Azlan made Mirai give up. So, she answered his question, averting her gaze from Azlan, staring into the distance covered by snowstorms.
"Actually I don't understand everything that happened either."
"I was being photographed for a summer edition magazine. I work as an amateur model. This swimsuit is one of the photo props. During the photo session, right under the blazing sun, suddenly I realized I had moved to this snowy city."
"I recognized this was still Japan, at least the architecture. But, when I began to understand the anomaly that happened to me, I was found by that giant monster. So I ran while screaming for help, hoping someone would hear."
Her story stopped there. Azlan listened silently. Then, he asked the most important question.
"Did you find a Light Orb?"
"Light Orb?" Mirai furrowed her brow briefly, then her eyes sparkled. "Ah, do you mean those light orbs that break as soon as they're touched?"
That unexpected acknowledgment surprised Azlan. He asked without holding expectations. Just trying his luck. Unexpectedly, Mirai really found it!
(Could it be that women's luck is higher than men's?) That thought crossed his mind.
Azlan himself had only found three Light Orbs during his stay of more than three months in this mysterious world.
Meanwhile, Akane found one at the beginning of arriving in this world, then found two more when they recovered in a house while on a ski vacation in Gala Yuzawa, Niigata Prefecture.
Now, Mirai achieved an accomplishment similar to Akane's: finding a Light Orb at the beginning of her arrival.
Conversely, Tomoya and Tomaru—those two 'bastards' in their respective categories—weren't that lucky.
The luck gap between women and men, at least in this small sample, appeared quite clear.
"What did you get from that Light Orb?" Azlan asked, trying to make his voice sound neutral. "Of course, if you don't want to tell me, that's fine. I won't abandon you because of it."
Mirai laughed softly with a half-laughing half-amused tone.
"Oh my, Azlan-kun. Your words sound like a veiled threat, you know? However, I believe you're not that kind of person."
Mirai was confident in her ability to judge others. Her instinct said that the man who saved her had a good core, even though his word choice was sometimes a bit awkward or ambiguous.
"It's not a big secret at all. Azlan-kun is my savior. If I can't trust you, then who else? Oh, please hold me tighter for a moment, okay? I need to take it out."
Following her request, Azlan's left hand which was already encircling her thigh for support, accidentally slipped further back, touching Mirai's buttocks when the girl released one of her hands from his neck.
Under Azlan's astonished gaze, Mirai took something from her full cleavage. Something whose size shouldn't be possible to hide there.
"Here it is."
What Mirai took from that... unusual storage place, was a small object. The object looked like a miniature toy house made of wood, complete with small details like windows, doors, and a roof made of what looked like green foliage.
Of course, Azlan didn't consider it an ordinary toy at all. His experience taught him that there were no ordinary items or abilities from Light Orbs.
And sure enough, Mirai verified his suspicion.
"This is called Green Secret House. An Artifact Class Item from the game YGGDRASIL."
Mirai gazed at the miniature between her fingers.
"This object called Green Secret House can instantly create a small cottage to be used as temporary shelter. Although it looks like a simple dwelling on the outside, supposedly inside there are several basic rooms that can accommodate several people comfortably."
However, in the middle of her explanation, Mirai's own expression showed doubt.
"At least, that's the information that suddenly appeared in my head when that Light Orb broke and this thing appeared." Mirai shook her head gently. "Initially, I was very skeptical. How could a toy house create a real house? That sounded like children's fairy tales or hallucination tricks from cold and fear."
She paused briefly. Her gaze shifted to the bluish-white light wings that powerfully spread from Azlan's back, supporting their combined weight, carrying them floating across the cold air above the terrifying shadows of Titans roaming the streets below.
The reality that they were flying, that supernatural power like this truly existed, made any premise possible.
Mirai took a deep breath, and the doubt on her face slightly melted, replaced by acceptance that was still shocked.
"Now I've changed my mind."