… …
… …
At that moment, on the bridge of the aerial ship Fraxinus, which hovered 15,000 meters above Tengu City, a group of Ratatoskr's elite members sat in a row.
They are a group of love masters carefully selected from all over the country, assisting Shidou under the command of Kotori.
Each of them was in a state of perfect tension, eyes locked on the massive main screen set up on the bridge. Displayed on the screen was a live transmission from the ground, captured by an automatic sensor camera.
Simulating Shidou's point of view, the upper body of the current target, Tobiichi Origami, was shown. Supplementary images from other angles, along with various parameters, were also displayed around it.
Then—at the precise moment Origami asked her question, a "beep!" echoed across the bridge, and a new window opened on the screen.
"The options have appeared...!" someone announced. These were the choices that had generated in response to Origami's question to Shidou:
"Shidou-san, where should we go to talk?"
Kotori, seated in the captain's chair on the upper deck of the bridge, bobbed the candy stick in her mouth and lightly patted her knees.
The onboard AI of Fraxinus had detected fluctuations in the subject's emotional state and generated three options for Shidou's next move:
① "Actually, there's a movie I'd like to see with you. Let's go watch a romance film."
② "I want to go shopping with you. Let's have fun browsing together."
③ "Let's not waste time and go straight to the hotel."
"Everyone, cast your vote!" Kotori commanded. The crew members responded simultaneously, pressing the buttons before them.
The main screen instantly displayed the voting results. The most popular choice was Option ②.
"Hm... Option 2. It's the safest choice," Kotori said, stroking her chin thoughtfully.
One crew member raised his hand and commented, "Option 1 is also appealing, but it might feel awkward to go straight into a setting where silence is expected."
A female crew member nodded in agreement. "Option ② is more versatile. You can observe the other person while spending time together. And honestly, no girl hates shopping."
Everyone around nodded in agreement.
However, a nearby female crew member broke into a nervous sweat and asked hesitantly, "By the way… why did Option ③ even show up...?"
You'd have to ask the Fraxinus AI about that one," Kotori replied with a shrug.
If you plan to take a girl to such a place at the beginning of a date, you can't say anything even if you get slapped in the face.
Kotori pulled the microphone over and gave instructions to Shidou. "Shidou, the answer is out. It's ②──"
"—Wait a minute."
However, Shidou lowered his voice so Origami wouldn't hear and cut Kotori off.
"What's wrong?"
"I already said this… Isn't this supposed to be a date? And I'm not really in the mood to fold paper right now... Why don't we just find a café and try to gather more information…"
"Hmph—you're such a loser." Before he could finish, Kotori interrupted, clearly displeased.
"Even if that's true, the disappeared Katsu also had the power to seal Spirits—and Origami liked him. But now, he doesn't exist in this world. The only person who can seal Spirits now is you! What if Origami suddenly transforms into a Spirit after today and draws an attack from AST or DEM? What if she's defeated unexpectedly? Are you seriously going to push this task onto someone who doesn't even exist anymore—just because you're waiting for Katsu to come back? Do you want to carry that guilt for the rest of your life?"
"…"
Shidou fell silent.
After a moment, he lowered his eyes and whispered, "I'm sorry… It's my fault—"
"Phew— It's fine, as long as you understand. Now choose option two for me."
"Ah--OK."
Sighing, he looked at Origami.
"Um... Would you go shopping with me first?"
"Huh?" Origami looked at Shidou in surprise.
"Didn't you say... this was just a conversation..."
Realizing her words had come across as too blunt—maybe even a little harsh—she quickly waved her hand.
"Ah, that's not what I meant…"
"It's okay—if you're not up for it, we can just go somewhere and talk." Shidou gave a wry smile.
"Ah... No, it's fine. We can go shopping first. I have some free time today..."
Back on Fraxinus, Kotori let out a deep breath, leaned back in the commander's chair, and frowned.
"As expected… she's not easy to deal with... Is that Katsu-nii really that charming?"
… …
It was now 6:30 p.m.
In November, the sun set early, and the town had already fallen into deep darkness. Under Kotori and the crew's direction—some of it not-so-subtle—Shidou had been walking around with Origami, who hadn't exactly been in the best mood, until this point.
"Ah… I'm sorry. I've taken up so much of your time," Shidou said sincerely. He genuinely felt guilty. Origami hadn't really wanted to go shopping with him, but he'd used all kinds of excuses to convince her... Even though all the expenses were covered by the people on Fraxinus...
"No… It's fine." Origami forced a smile and waved her hands. Then, she hugged her arms and rubbed them a little. She seemed cold—
No surprise. The mild daytime warmth felt like a distant memory. The air was now biting, each breath forming a fine mist that quickly vanished. A chilly wind rustled the trees, swirling fallen leaves into the sky.
The sound of winter's footsteps surrounded them as they arrived at a hilltop park with a panoramic view of the town. Fraxinus had suggested this spot as a romantic way to end the date.
From the edge of the park, stars could be seen—but ironically, the city lights below outshone those in the sky.
"It's still pretty cold at this hour," Shidou commented, noticing Origami's discomfort.
Origami nodded. "Yeah… It was warm earlier, so I didn't think ahead. I should've brought gloves." She gave a bitter smile and rubbed her hands together.
Today was… how to put it? Not exactly great. Her mood had been off, and this classmate was a bit too persistent... But at least he was being polite and thoughtful for now.
"Haha… Yeah, I get that. Oh, by the way, let's grab something warm from that vending machine over there—" Shidou began, but Kotori's voice came through his earpiece.
"Hey, Shidou—that's not right. She just said her hands are cold."
Shidou didn't respond. His eyes darted around as he twitched his lips. He knew exactly what Kotori meant... but if he actually did what she was suggesting, he was probably going to walk away with a slap mark across his face.
...And that would definitely bring today's "date" to an early and awkward end.
So, pretending he hadn't heard Kotori's hint, he turned and jogged toward the vending machine—completely ignoring her irritated voice crackling in his headset.
As a result... ...just when he was halfway through. A shadow blocks his vision when he looks up multiple Nibelcole already surrounding them.
"Shidou, run!!!" Kotori's voice came from the headset.
In the Spirit Apartment, Kaguya, who had been searching the corner of the room for the "lost item," accidentally knocked over a water cup nearby.
Instinctively, she reached out to pick up the broken pieces, but in her carelessness, a small tear opened on her slender white finger, and a drop of bright red blood surfaced—
Kaguya blinked, staring at the blood. It didn't hurt… but for some reason, her chest ached. Lately, her emotions had been all over the place, rising and crashing unpredictably—enough to cause accidents even during simple tasks.
Yuzuru wasn't in much better shape. She sometimes forgot what she was arguing with Kaguya, she forced herself to maintain a composed, reliable impression, pretending nothing had happened.
However, at this moment --- all the spirits in the house were suddenly stunned ---
Tohka, sensing something instinctively, suddenly leapt up from the sofa. She opened the doors and windows, stepping barefoot onto the balcony.
Leaning out over the railing, she scanned the night. In the distance, high up in the dark sky, a faint glow shimmered above the far-off highlands.
"That's…!"
If it were an ordinary human, that faint light wouldn't have stood out at all. But Tohka recognized it instantly. That glow was caused by spiritual energy—someone powerful was over there.
"Hmph. This is definitely suspicious. This feeling is…"
"Yes. It's a Spirit."
The others quickly followed Tohka out to the balcony. As if responding to the same unspoken instinct, they all looked in the direction where the energy was emanating.
"Excuse me… where is that exactly?"
"Ah… I think that's near the park area," Miku replied.
"...!" The moment Miku said this, the face of Shidou, who was not present now flashed through everyone's mind, they remembered he did say he was going there for some reason.
That's right. From what Miku said, that was the place Ka... had taken Tohka to before.
The moment she understood this, Tohka's heart began beating violently.
The face of shadow that appeared in her mind, mixed with the strange feeling that always lingered in her heart, made Tohka's heart beat faster,r but now they had to rescue Shidou first before dealing with this emotion.
"Tohka!"
Tohka stepped onto the balcony railing half-subconsciously and jumped into the darkness.