Chapter 46

“Man, I sure am hungry…” It was the first thing out of Kenk’s mouth after emerging from his Caliculus capsule. Yuuma didn’t say it out loud, but he felt exactly the same. The ladies of Thula had invited them to stay, insisting, “We’ll make you a feast—eat up!” but Yuuma and the others had politely refused. Yuuma was quickly starting to regret that decision. However, by the time they had finished curing all the villagers and had explained what happened, it was already past noon. They felt a little awkward as well, seeing as how the person who had attacked the village and stolen the Masks of Deception was one of their own classmates, Niki Kakeru. None of them were much in the mood for a party. Regardless, the villagers cheerfully allowed Yuuma and the others to take the remaining three bottles of panacea with them and even plied them with a generous amount of food to take back to the shelter, so after placing the items in their inventories, they logged out in a room at the inn, returning to Althea at last. Yuuma and Kenk were still stretching their limbs in the walkway when Sawa leaped down from the gangway of her capsule. She seemed to have had a funny thought. “Hey, what do you suppose Harlin and the rest think about us logging out?” “Huh? What do you mean?” Kenk asked, confused. Sawa glanced up at the Caliculus capsule she had just emerged from before turning toward them again. “From the villagers’ point of view, we were supposedly staying at the inn and then just disappeared. Surely that would have to seem like an abnormal event to them, like being turned to stone.” “That’s… Well, yeah, but…,” Kenk muttered, his expression doubtful. Yuuma, who was standing next to Kenk, gave it some thought before answering. “That merchant in the forest, Elaine at Pomegranate Pavilion, and that old man at the House of Stripes all referred to us as something called adventurers. I think adventurers must be seen as a special presence of some sort in Algol, in a way that differs from NPC travelers and mercenaries. For them, maybe stuff like pulling items in and out of our inventories or logging out just resembles another kind of magic, one that only adventurers can use…” “Oh, that makes sense…,” Sawa said, nodding. Kenk, standing next to her, finally smiled. “I know another benefit reserved for adventurers: leveling up!” “We can check our character sheets once everything else is settled,” Nagi said, admonishing Kenk as she descended her own walkway. She was the next to join them after Sawa. Looking around, Yuuma saw that Hokari, Chinami, Aoi, and Kisanuki had logged out safely as well. They descended from their separate gangways carefully, one step at a time, on slightly wobbly feet. Yuuma wanted to see his own stats as well. Since they hadn’t beaten the boss in the end, Yuuma’s party had only risen one level through combat, but for some reason, the moment they finished turning the villagers back to normal, a system message popped up, saying that they had completed the Holy Flower quest, and they suddenly jumped up two more levels. Completing a quest they hadn’t actually been assigned felt a little strange, but if Kisanuki’s conjecture about fulfilling the requirements in an unexpected way was correct, maybe it made sense for them to complete the quest that way, too. Whatever the reason, Yuuma wasn’t going to look a gift level in the mouth. Thanks to all the EXP they had gained, Yuuma, Sawa, and Kenk were now level 15; Nagi was level 14; Hokari, Chinami, and Kisanuki were level 12; and Aoi was level 11. Honestly, Yuuma would have been satisfied with just achieving their main objective for the dive, which was to acquire an item to remove petrification, but if Nagi’s holy magic skill had increased enough, they might even be able to reach their secondary goal of gaining access to the Holy Bands spell now, too. Additionally, Aoi Soga, who had only been level 6 when they dove in, had risen all the way to level 11, putting her at almost the same level as Tomori Shimizu—a huge success. The Priest class was one of the most important roles at the shelter. Having three Priests who were now over level 10 was more encouraging than any weapon or piece of armor could ever be. Aoi had also grown significantly as a person. When they first dove in, she had been timid and unassertive. She’d blanched in the face of trash mobs and had panicked and run away during the boss fight. But figuring out the gimmick of using the ball-shaped plants to change the boss’s color had given her new confidence, and she had carried out her duties as a Priest admirably after that, without fear. Yuuma strolled over to Aoi’s side, after she made her way down the walkway, to express his appreciation once again. However… “Soga…?” …Aoi was staring at the floor. When Yuuma saw the tears in her eyes, he wasn’t sure what to say. At first, he was worried that she had regressed back to the emotional state she had been in before diving, but Aoi wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her uniform and spoke in a determined and forceful voice. “I’m sorry. When I saw Harlin with his mom and dad, it just made me think of my own family. But don’t worry; I’m fine now.” Chinami immediately zipped to Aoi’s side, clasping her around the shoulders. “Me too! But who can blame us, right? After a scene like that!” Chinami’s voice was cheerful, but her eyes were a little puffy as well. Even Yuuma had been reminded of his own parents when he saw Harlin sobbing in the arms of his mother and father. Even now, Yuuma’s parents were probably out there somewhere, on Althea grounds, beyond the unbreakable exterior wall, fervently praying that Yuuma and Sawa were safe. Just the thought made Yuuma’s chest feel tight. Kakeru Niki, Ryuugo Nunono, and Shizu Metoki must have felt the same way. So then why had they tried to turn the students in the first-floor shelter to stone, instead of working together to help everyone get out of here? Their first attack had failed, but what if they were planning a second one—? “We should head back soon…” Yuuma lifted his head at the sound of Hokari’s voice. Hokari and Kisanuki were both standing farther down along the curved walkway, Hokari with his back turned to them, Kisanuki staring their way with an impassive expression on his face. “All right. But remember, we’re not out of the woods yet. Let’s keep our eyes peeled,” Yuuma replied, grasping the cleansing steel chain that had been hanging from his belt. On their way back, they encountered two of the giant caterpillar creatures known as Tabanus Hellfly Larvae, but between Kenk’s hammer and Yuuma’s chain, the monsters were barely an issue. Yuuma couldn’t help but recall his earlier suspicions that the creatures might have originally been human, but when he thought of what had happened to Takeshi Moro after being infested by one of the Hellfly pupae, he had no reservations about crushing them with his chain. Since the caterpillars had spawned in the main lobby, there was a good chance they had set off some of the Whistle Traps in the area. If so, the other students could be huddling in fear inside the shelter right now, terrified that Niki and the others were here to attack again. Although they were still being careful, Yuuma and the others picked up their pace. After passing through the main lobby and the waiting zone, the entrance to the shelter finally came into sight. The display racks they were using as a barricade were still firmly in place, but Yuuma couldn’t help but picture the worst. What if everyone inside had already been turned to stone? Yuuma approached the barrier, unconsciously muffling his footsteps as he walked. He knocked lightly with his leather-gloved right hand, calling out to the students inside. “It’s us—we’re back. Open the barricade, please.” After ten agonizing seconds, the display rack inched to the side slightly, and Shinta Aida peeked out through the gap. Yuuma sighed in relief. Aida’s face, however, was plastered with a mixture of worry and distrust. “Ashihara… It’s you, right?” “Who else does it look like?!” Kenk interrupted from the side, but the furrow between Aida’s brow remained. “How should I know? You could be Niki or someone, using some kind of magic or demon exploit to trick us… We should have thought up a password or something for this…” “Well, why not just ask me something that only students who were in the shelter yesterday would know?” Yuuma suggested. Aida nodded, very serious, before suddenly disappearing from sight, as if someone had just shoved him out of the way. Teruki Sugamo’s sullen face appeared. “Tell me the names of all the students who died or have been turned to stone…” “Miura and Moro have died. Oono, Sera, Takio, and Wakasa…and Ezato and Misono…were turned to stone,” Yuuma promptly answered. With a “humph,” Sugamo withdrew his face. The barricade immediately began to slide to the side, creating a space just wide enough for a single person to slip through. The others entered, one at a time, while Yuuma and Kenk kept their eyes fixed on the main lobby. There were no sounds, and they didn’t see any movement. The two boys nodded wordlessly at each other, before slipping inside the shelter and quickly returning the display rack to its original position. The moment they were safe inside: “Welcome back!” “You’re here!” “Is everyone okay?!” They were greeted by a tumult of excited voices. Yuuma flinched involuntarily. Looking up, he saw that the students had gathered in the middle of the shelter to applaud their return. Even Sugamo, who was usually so quick to lose his temper, stood by with his mouth closed. Though, of course, he didn’t join in with the applause. “Kenk, maybe you should say something…,” Yuuma whispered softly. “Why me?!” Kenk whispered back but then lifted his right hand and raised his voice. “Everyone, sorry we kept you waiting! We managed to get our hands on an item to remove petrification, just like we said! And we brought back plenty of food as well!” As soon as the students heard what Kenk had to say, they erupted into even louder applause. Five minutes later… Once the shelter had settled down again, three of the boys began a delicate moving process. The item in question, which they were carrying as slowly as they could, was the petrified Takato Sera. Sera was the best friend of Haruki Hokari, who had joined the search party. Sera had turned to stone with his long (the longest of the boys in Class 6-1), center-parted hair swinging out to the side. While they were moving him yesterday, a tiny bit of that hair had chipped off after coming into contact with one of the shelves, so in order to avoid a repeat of that tragedy, Hokari and Kenk supported Sera’s trunk from either side while Tada held both of Sera’s legs, shuffling forward carefully. Yuuma was watching them work when Aida approached from the side and spoke to Yuuma in a small voice. “Sorry I didn’t let you in right away earlier. We heard a few of the Whistle Traps go off about an hour ago… So we’ve been on our guard ever since.” “Of course… The traps were set off by more of those giant caterpillar bugs that attacked us yesterday. We got rid of them, but more will probably spawn eventually…” “Those things…,” Aida said, sounding disgusted. He pushed the hair of his faux-hawk back roughly. “Since we sealed the ducts, the bugs are probably no problem in here, but if another one of those giant freakazoids shows up…” By “giant freakazoid,” Aida probably meant the Conehead Bruiser. That was true; there was no guarantee that more of those pinheads might not show up to attack. If Yuuma was right and the monsters roaming Althea were adults now transformed, who had been inside the building when the anomaly occurred, so long as Yuuma and the others kept defeating them, surely the monsters would have to run out of raw materials at some point. But that conjecture was too gruesome to mention out loud. Yuuma was trying to think of something else to say when— “Okay, let’s set him down!” someone shouted. Yuuma turned his gaze back toward the others. The boys had laid the petrified Sera down onto a mattress spread out in the middle of the shelter. This time they had avoided chipping any of his hair. The three boys who had moved Sera stepped back and turned their eyes toward Yuuma, in unison. Yuuma nodded silently in return and approached. The other students had gathered around in small groups, staring at Sera with a mixture of expectation and worry. Yuuma was anxious as well. All they could do was trust that the consumable worked the same way in Althea as it worked in Algol. Yuuma opened his inventory and tapped the entry reading PANACEA (3), materializing the item. The glass bottle was plastic again, with a label and all. It certainly didn’t look as if there were some sort of universal remedy bottled up inside. “Are you sure this stuff will—?” Sugamo started to say doubtfully, then quickly shut his mouth. A moment later, Yuuma noticed as well—the translucent liquid inside the bottle was glowing faintly. The girls gasped in restrained wonder. Yuuma tapped the bottle to display the item properties window and then, with the window still open, untwisted the cap. Yuuma and the others had brought back three bottles with them—enough panacea for nine people—but they could not afford to waste a single drop. Yuuma was holding the bottle in his right hand. He steadied it with his left as well and slowly began to tip it over Sera’s face. The pale liquid poured out in a thin stream, landing on Sera’s brow and creating a small spray. Yuuma moved the bottle sideways, letting the liquid spread to Sera’s face, neck, and chest as well. The game system was supposedly set up so that the panacea would work even if he kept pouring it all in one spot, but Yuuma couldn’t help but feel like it would be more effective to let it soak into different parts of Sera’s body. As soon as the item name in the properties window changed from PANACEA (3) to PANACEA (2), Yuuma tipped the bottle upright again. A moment later, Sera sparkled with a flash of light and color began to return to his body, beginning with his hands and feet. Yuuma had already witnessed this phenomenon a few dozen times in Thula Village, but seeing stone turn to flesh here in the real world was a stark reminder of the situation they were in. But unsettling or not, this was a million times better than not being able to turn Sera and the others back. Besides, if they could cure petrification, then Yuuma had reason to hope that he would be able to accomplish his other major goal in the end—of turning Sumika Watamaki back to normal… Yuuma watched Sera transform, as these thoughts ran through his head. Hokari was kneeling on the other side of Sera, staring down at his friend with a look of apprehension on his face. The percentage of Sera that was petrified steadily decreased. Eventually, there was only a small area of stone left, near his heart. It vaporized suddenly, like water tossed into a hot frying pan. The light returned to Sera’s eyes, which had been open when he was petrified. He blinked several times. Yuuma had expected this, since the same had been true for the villagers of Thula, but Sera had no memory of anything that had happened while he was stone. In other words, from Sera’s point of view, time had suddenly leaped forward from the point when he was hit with Niki’s petrification spell. “Agh… Aghhh…!!” Sera screamed and tried to jump to his feet, but Hokari held him firmly by the shoulders with both hands. “Sera, you’re all right! They’re gone now!” In response, Sera gave a startled tremble and then relaxed, staring up into Hokari’s face. The fear in his eyes gradually faded, and he was able to focus again. “H-Hokari…?” Sera rasped. He glanced at his own body, gingerly running a hand over his chest and stomach. “I…could have sworn I was being turned to stone… But that doesn’t make any sense, does it…?” “Actually, it does. You were turned to stone.” Sera’s jaw dropped in exaggerated fashion, causing the other students gathered around to giggle under their breath. Sera’s HP was almost full, so after a little drink of water, he was up and moving again. They still had him rest in a corner of the shelter, as they continued treating the others, just in case. They understood now that the panic petrified students felt when brought back to their senses was manageable, so long as they had someone there who could snap them out of it. As they cured Youichi Oono first, and then Masato Takio, Naruo Wakasa, and Shouko Ezato fifth, they had students who were close to each of them wait on standby to call their friends’ names as soon they came to. In this way, they were able to free all five students from petrification without incident. The problem, however, was the remaining student, Aria Misono. Somehow, they managed to carry her to the center of the room without damaging her, Sugamo yelling all the while not to drop her, not to shake her, not to bump her into anything. But Aria had been turned to stone while in the middle of attacking Niki, her left hand still raised high in mid-swipe. On top of that, she was still in demon form. Under the circumstances, she might not just panic. She might attack the very first student she saw. Yuuma had figured that if Nagi’s skill level was high enough to cast Holy Bands now, that they could have her cast the spell on whichever student was tasked with grabbing Aria’s attention, but unfortunately, it seemed petrified characters were immune to almost all buff and healing spells. Instead, they decided to load the waiting student with all the protective buffs that they could, just in case the unexpected happened, but that soon led to a new dispute. Both Sugamo and Chinami volunteered themselves for the role of calling Aria’s name, and neither seemed interested in letting the other have the honor. In the end, they decided to go with a compromise. They would stand side by side in front of Aria and call her name at the same time. After the priestly trio of Nagi, Tomori, and Aoi finished casting their buffs and stepped back, Yuuma stepped forward in their place and began to pour the remaining panacea in the second bottle onto Aria. The faintly luminescent liquid trickled along the zigzagging horns that extended from her temple, streaming down her face and onto her body. Eventually, the last drop of panacea hovered for a moment at the mouth of the bottle before plunking down onto the petrified girl’s face. Aria’s entire body was encapsulated in a faint light, and the petrification began to fade before their very eyes, starting from the tips of her limbs and the ends of her hair. At the moment, Aria’s chest and hips were only covered in some sort of swimsuit-like bodysuit. Usually, Yuuma would have been too shy to look at her directly, but now wasn’t the time for that sort of thing. He took a single step back—still close enough to come to Sugamo and Chinami’s aid if needed—and waited for the de-petrification process to complete. The boundary between stone and flesh passed over her shoulders, hips, and face, converging into a circle around her heart. There was a soft spray of light particles as the final remaining patch of stone evaporated. “…aaAAGGGHHHH!”” A terrible roar immediately escaped Aria’s lips. “Ria!” “Aria!” Sugamo and Chinami shouted her name at the same time, but their voices were lost in the tumult of Aria’s bestial scream. Her clawed left hand swept downward with full strength. Yuuma dashed forward quickly, tossing the empty plastic bottle aside and grabbing Aria by her left arm. Sugamo and Aria rushed forward as well, latching on to Aria and trying to hold her in place. ZAPPP!! There was an explosive thunderclap, and a flash of yellow light quivered in the air. Yuuma felt shock blitz through his body. Out of the left-hand corner of his vision, he saw Sugamo and Chinami go flying. Yuuma had never felt anything like this before, but he knew, even before the Stun icon had even appeared on his HP bar, that he had just been electrocuted. This was one of the bonuses given by Aria’s demon exploit, Lightning Transformation. Aria was still in demon form, so Yuuma should have anticipated that her exploit could still be running, but it was too late for regret now. If Yuuma let go of Aria now, there was a risk she might hurt one of the other students. “M-Mi…sono…!!” Yuuma shouted, feeling like he was on the verge of blacking out. He clung to Aria’s left arm with both hands for all he was worth. But Aria bared her sharp fangs, as if she could still see the image of Kakeru Niki standing before her, and began swiping at the air wildly with her clawed right hand. Each swing traced claw marks of arc lightning through the air. “Gyaggghhh!” An inhuman growl escaped Aria’s lips. Although nearly paralyzed, Yuuma managed to shove into her with his body, knocking her to the ground. Once she was down, he held on with all the strength he could muster. “Yuu!!” Sawa shouted from behind him. “Gyah!” Aria sank her teeth into Yuuma’s left shoulder with a sudden growl. It felt like electricity was being pumped directly inside Yuuma’s body—no, that was exactly what was happening. Yuuma’s vision flashed white for a moment, and his HP instantly dropped by more than half. Aria took her mouth off Yuuma’s left shoulder and bared her teeth again, possibly planning to bite him on the other shoulder next. If Yuuma took another bite like that, it would be sure to kill him. Yuuma, however, just squeezed harder, both arms still wrapped around Aria. He pressed his face close to hers and spoke in a ragged voice. “Aperta Ostium!!” There was a jolt where his skin touched hers. The sensation felt like the lightning crackling through his body, but something about it was decisively different. Yuuma’s vision went black, and he found himself falling, straight down into an endless dark. It was like he was being drawn into Aria… No sooner had the thought formed than he landed face-first onto what felt like flat, solid ground. “Nrgk!” After releasing a pathetic grunt, Yuuma reflexively glanced toward the HP bar in the upper-left-hand corner of his vision to check for fall damage. But the bar was gone, and his nose wasn’t even bleeding. Still lying face down on the ground, Yuuma shook his head several times and waited for the feeling of dizziness to pass. Finally, he lifted himself up. A truly strange sight awaited. Yuuma was standing smack-dab in the middle of a level platform, about ten meters across and ten meters wide, floating within an empty void. In the distance, a trail of dark cumulonimbus clouds overlapped across an indigo night sky, while yellow lightning writhed between the clouds like a snake. Looking up, he saw a waxing crescent moon that shone coldly in the night above, while more jagged clouds drifted past. Yuuma looked down at his feet again. The platform was covered in vibrant golden tiles. The only item of furniture was a single delicate chair, which had been placed in front of him, at the very edge of the void. And someone was sitting in that seat. “…” Yuuma caught his breath for a moment before cautiously stepping forward. In his head, he knew that distance in this world—in the internus—held no meaning. But he was still wary of getting too close. Although there was only about five meters between himself and the person, the only light was from the moon. Even after approaching halfway, the person’s face remained shrouded in shadow. Yuuma hesitated for a moment, wondering if it was safe to get any closer…when the clouds obscuring the moon suddenly parted overhead, and the light grew clearer. “Ah…?!” Yuuma gasped softly as soon as she came into view. She had the same face, the same hairstyle, was the same height as Aria Misono—but she wasn’t Aria. Her eyes with their yellow irises were half closed, and an enigmatic smile danced across her lips. Zigzagging horns sprouted from her temples, and bat-like wings extended from her back. As for her swimsuit-like bodysuit…she wasn’t wearing it anymore. The Aria in the chair was utterly and entirely nude. Yuuma almost glanced away reflexively but just barely managed to keep his eyes trained forward. He straightened up, bowed deeply, and spoke. “It’s nice to meet you… My name is Yuuma Ashihara. First, allow me to apologize for entering your internus without being invited…” “…” The creature just stared at Yuuma without responding, the smile that played at the corner of her lips growing slightly more pronounced. Yuuma steeled himself and spoke again. “You’re the demon possessing Mibs…Aria Misono…right?” “You do like to ask obvious questions, don’t you…?” the demon with Aria’s face said. It was the first words she had spoken so far. The voice sounded almost exactly the same as Aria’s, but mingled with it, there was a second phantom sound, almost an octave deeper. The demon crossed her legs upon her seat and rested her chin in her hands, which were propped up by her knees. “You did apologize for intruding, though, I suppose. And you released Aria from her petrification for me… I am Ose, the demon.” “Ose…” Yuuma couldn’t remember ever hearing that name before, but it was probably another one of Solomon’s demons, just like Valac and Crocell. Even though she looked exactly like Aria, something about the way the demon spoke felt masculine. Yuuma wondered if that was just the demon’s personality or if it was actually a man, but he didn’t want to upset the demon by asking. Yuuma hadn’t expected to find Aria’s demon here in the first place. Since the person rampaging out in the real world was in demon form, he had assumed he would discover Aria trapped here, alone, in her internus. That was the whole reason he had forced this connection. Valac said that connecting two internuses required the hosts to be spiritually close, making it a practical miracle he had been able to connect at all, seeing how he and Aria weren’t that close at all. But whatever he was expecting, it certainly wasn’t this. If the demon was in here, did that mean the person rampaging out there in the real world was the real Aria after all? Had she been so angry at Niki that she had completely lost control? Yuuma stood there, lost in thought. “Well, Yuuma…? Aren’t you here to stop Aria’s rampage?” the demon Ose asked. Yuuma lifted his head in surprise and nodded. “Y-yes… I am. So…it really is her going berserk out there?” “Yes and no. Look behind you,” Ose said, unclasping her hands and pointing past Yuuma’s shoulder. As Yuuma turned in trepidation, he realized there was another chair now, waiting at the opposite end of the platform. And of course, someone was sitting there. The chair was about ten meters away, but if Yuuma squinted hard enough, he could already tell who it was. The real Aria Misono. There were no horns on her head, and she was dressed in her Yukihana Elementary School uniform, like usual. But she was slumped against the back of the chair, motionless, as if asleep. Both Ose and Aria were here in the internus. So then who was going berserk out there in the real world…? While Yuuma was still standing there, frozen in place, he heard soft footsteps patter toward him from behind. They stopped by his left side. Yuuma turned to look, catching sight of the demon Ose’s naked form. He quickly turned away but not before he noticed something. Her body was that of a boy’s, not a girl’s. Yuuma didn’t know what was going on there, but he decided to put his questions about Ose’s body aside for now and turned his eyes back toward the real Aria, who was sitting before him. Yuuma was pretty sure time in the real world stood still while in the internus, but either way, his HP was hanging on by a thread. He had to do something to wake Aria up, so they could return to reality together, but he doubted that just giving her a shake would do the trick. And he wasn’t so sure that Ose would tell him what to do, either, even if he asked. After all, Aria’s demonization ratio was probably inching upward every second that she continued to rage out there in the real world, which ought to be exactly what Ose would want. Maybe Yuuma could negotiate with Ose, but the demon would probably want something in return. The only thing Yuuma had on him right now was the uniform on his back, and here in the world of imago, as Valac had described it, he wasn’t even sure if he could take his clothing off… “I’m the one who granted Aria power, that’s true,” Ose said suddenly. Yuuma glanced to the side again. “Is that…because she wanted power?” “Naturally. I can’t stand heavy-handed drama. I don’t have the patience to listen to some litany of complaints, all because I forced something down someone’s throat.” “…” Yuuma knew he shouldn’t take a demon’s words at face value, but it really felt like Ose meant what she said. In which case, if this rampage wasn’t what Aria really wanted, maybe Ose didn’t care to let it continue, either. “You were right earlier… I came here to stop Aria’s rampage. Would you tell me what I can do to wake her up?” Yuuma asked nervously. Ose shrugged. “I would if I could, but I’m afraid it’s not that simple. At the moment, Aria has been consumed by the power of the vires. She won’t be able to stop until she exhausts its power. I warned her to be careful…” “Consumed…? By the vires?” Yuuma glanced at the sleeping Aria. “Me and my sister have used our powers several times, though, and nothing like that has ever happened to us…” “You probably have a different kind of vires. My vires, which I believe you referred to as Lightning Transformation, imbues the physical body with the power of lightning. Once activated, there is no space for anything but blind rage. A vires like this tends to consume the host… Particularly if they are not yet used to it.” “…” Ose made a good point. Aria’s Lightning Transformation was a much more direct power than either Yuuma’s Quick Action or Sawa’s Magic Skill Boost. But Yuuma doubted this was the only reason for Aria’s berserker rage. Yuuma hesitated slightly before speaking up again. “It definitely does seem like the power of the vires has consumed her…but I’m not sure that’s the whole story. Aria got so angry when her friend was turned to stone. Could that maybe…also have something to do with her rage…?” Yuuma was worried Ose would be upset at him for speaking out of turn, but Ose simply nodded in agreement. “It’s possible. But if so, that would make it even harder to wake Aria up. Anger and violence… Human reason can easily fall before that combination.” “I…think I know what you mean,” Yuuma murmured quietly. When Yuuma punched Kakeru Niki in the face, his fist wrapped in the cleansing steel chain, he hadn’t held back. Not even a little. Cleansing steel was a very rare material. Instead of just pulverizing Niki’s wolf mask, there was a chance he could have damaged Niki’s face beyond what even healing magic could fix. And yet, despite this, Yuuma had let his anger get the best of him and had punched Niki as hard as he could. Maybe Aria’s anger had gotten the better of her as well. “But Mibs…I mean, Aria…is actually a very kind person. A lot more than I am. I don’t think she really wants to be doing this. Even now, deep down, I’m sure she doesn’t want to hurt anyone.” Ose listened to what Yuuma had to say and then let out a long, heavy sigh. She faintly murmured something to herself: “To choose, I suppose.” At least, that was what Yuuma thought he had heard. Before he could ask Ose to repeat herself, however, she began speaking again. “I don’t want Aria to hurt her friends, either. It wouldn’t do me any favors for her to be locked up or exiled, after all… All the same, there’s little I can do now to help you wake her. The internus is like a tiny bit of flotsam floating within a corner of the host’s mind. And I am but a simple anima, trapped within.” “F-flotsam…? This place…?” Yuuma glanced around at the boundless sea of clouds and sky surrounding him, before remembering that the vastness of the internus was but an illusion. Still, Ose’s mention of being trapped here seemed odd to Yuuma. The demons were the ones who had possessed Yuuma and his classmates for their own selfish ends, weren’t they? It wasn’t as if any of the students had asked for this. But bringing that point up now wasn’t going to get Yuuma anywhere. “When you say there is little that you can do,” Yuuma ventured, turning his eyes back toward Ose, “that means there’s still something… Right?” “I suppose. Neither of our voices can reach Aria in her current state, and pinching or smacking her would not do any good, either. She has been consumed by the vires power, and the Aria we see sleeping there is no more than a shadow.” “A shadow… So the only one who chanted the Aperta Ostium spell was me. Mibs isn’t actually inside the internus right now…” “Exactly. But even if the Aria we see is only a shadow, that does not mean it is not connected in some way to the real Aria. I will share a tiny bit of my animus with you now.” “Your animus…?” “The source of our vires is the power of the soul,” Ose said—Yuuma wasn’t quite sure if that constituted an explanation—before lifting her right hand into the air and pressing the tip of her middle finger against Yuuma’s brow. As Ose’s finger made contact, Yuuma felt something flowing into his head. A faint tingling heat, not exactly unpleasant, that spread to the back of his skull. After about five seconds, Ose removed her finger and pointed toward Aria with that same hand. “Touch Aria’s face and communicate your deepest thoughts to her.” “M-my deepest thoughts…? I don’t understand…,” Yuuma said uncertainly. Ose’s yellow eyes flared. “I told you, she can’t hear you now. Your only chance of reaching Aria, in Veras, is to transmit your thoughts upon the animus.” “But don’t you have that power yourself? You have an internus. Wouldn’t it make more sense for you to communicate with her—?” “I can’t do it. I haven’t built that time with her. Enough hand-wringing. Go.” Yuuma stumbled forward as Ose smacked him on the back. Yuuma wanted to tell Ose that he hadn’t “built that time with her,” either, but now that he thought about it, he met Aria Misono for the first time in his first year at Yukihana Elementary School. That meant they had been in the same class together for more than five years. Yuuma couldn’t remember Aria saying much to him in the past year or two other than “shut up,” “leave me alone,” or “whatever,” but he had always thought of her as a friend. And even though she didn’t let it show, he knew she was actually a very warm and kindhearted person. When it came down to it, even this fit of rage was caused by her friend, Shouko Ezato, someone whom she cared about, being turned to stone. Yuuma walked across the tile floor, beginning to hustle midway. He stopped in front of Aria, who was still sleeping in her chair. Something about her looked a little younger than usual. Maybe because this shadow of her didn’t include the makeup she had started wearing to school last year. Yuuma wasn’t sure if that meant something, but he took another step forward and called her name softly. “Mibs…” He remembered that she couldn’t hear him. He wasn’t really sure how to communicate his deepest thoughts, whatever those were, but after five or so seconds of just standing there, he gathered up his determination and took another step closer. Aria sat slumped to the right as she slept. After some hesitation, Yuuma extended his hand, brushing away the bangs that clung to her face. Naturally, she didn’t stir. Crouching down, he pressed his own face against hers, soft and white. Yuuma felt a jolt, like static electricity. Now that he thought of it, he was also pressing his face against hers in the real world. That was how he had entered the internus. And now, here in the internus, he was doing the same thing in order to communicate with Aria back in the real world. If anything, this felt like a long detour, but Yuuma could only have faith that this would allow him to reach her. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the point where their two faces touched. He felt the faint warmth gathered in his head—the animus that Ose had given him—begin to flow outward toward Aria. He willed all his thoughts, all his feelings, onto that stream. Mibs. You did well. Thanks to you, the shelter is safe. Ezato is back to normal now; they’re all back to normal. You don’t have to fight anymore. You can rest now and let us take over. Those words—not truly words—formed a compressed image that seemed to flow into Aria. Just as the feeling of the animus was disappearing from his head, he felt Aria’s shadow stir slightly. In a panic, Yuuma pulled his face away and opened his eyes. The shadow’s long eyelashes fluttered several times and then slowly opened. ZAPPP! Instantly, a powerful jolt coursed through the center of Yuuma’s brow. His vision went black, and his sense of gravity left him. He was overcome with an untethered sensation that could have been either floating or falling. A pure white light appeared, so far away, growing brighter and brighter the longer he stared. A cacophony of light and sound suddenly surged forward, from all sides, and he squeezed his eyes shut reflexively. However, he nearly cried out loud at the intense pain that assaulted his left shoulder a moment later. Gritting his teeth, he opened his eyes once more. He was back in the shelter, it seemed. The real world. He could hear other students screaming all around him, but he couldn’t see them. That was because Aria Misono’s face was right there, just ten centimeters away from his own. Yuuma was straddling her, pressing her shoulders against the ground, but there was no way he would be strong enough to actually restrain her. Not in her demon form. Yuuma tensed all over, ready to leap away if she tried to bite again. However… “…Yuu…?” Aria’s lips trembled, her voice ragged and broken. Tears welled up in her open eyes. A few yellow streaks remained, but her irises were no longer glowing. The horns extending from her temples had shrunk to about five centimeters. “Mibs… Are you back in charge of yourself?” Yuuma asked nervously. Aria nodded almost imperceptibly. “Y-yeah. I got so confused when I was fighting Niki. I don’t have a clear memory of what happened after that… But I was somewhere dark, and then I heard your voice. Saying that I didn’t need to fight anymore… That was when I opened my eyes, and…” “Of course…” Yuuma sighed in relief. Aria’s gaze flickered to Yuuma’s left shoulder. Her eyes went wide for a moment, before she squinted in pain. “Your shoulder… I did that, didn’t I?” “It wasn’t you. It’s not your fault,” Yuuma replied, shaking his head. He wanted to explain what Ose had told him about why she had gone berserk. Before he got the chance, however, someone from behind suddenly grabbed Yuuma by the hair in a talon grip, savagely yanking him to his feet. “Agh…!” Yuuma yowled, the pain enough to make him forget all about his shoulder for the moment. He desperately scrambled to place his weight on his feet. A moment later, the hand let go of Yuuma’s hair. Yuuma spun around, being careful not to step on Aria as he did so. That was when he came face-to-face with Teruki Sugamo. Something blazed deep within Sugamo’s eyes. Anger…and something else… “Sug!” “What the heck do you think you’re doing?!” Kenk and Sawa raced forward, shouting angrily. But before they could reach the two boys… “Who said you could touch Ria?!?!” Sugamo screamed. His right hand, bunched up into a fist, collided with the left side of Yuuma’s face.