Original chapter: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n0383ht/66

 

 

 Rea and the others gently welcomed me back after I finished fighting.

 

"I'm exhausted."

 

When I said that in a drained voice, Rea opened her arms wide and said, "Here!"

 

An angel.

 

Without resisting, I dove right into the angel's chest.

 

"Good work."

 

Warm.

 

Soft.

 

Gentle.

 

Smells nice.

 

How happy I am.

 

"I'm seriously so tired... Why did I have to do something like that?"

 

"I was surprised when I first heard you were going to fight to the death, but I guess it was necessary for Marin san."

 

"Probably. If that stops her from doing something stupid like hesitating to kill in front of Setaguchi, then I guess it was worth the exhaustion."

 

"Sisters who cannot understand each other unless they fight to the death... There truly are all sorts of sibling relationships in this world."

 

"Yeah, not everyone is as friendly as Nemusia's place. In fact, Nemusia's place is complicated too."

 

If you're close, it's great, but it just makes it that much harder when you're separated.

 

In that sense, the current relationship between Marin and me might be just right—a relationship where neither of us has to carry any burdens for the other.

 

Besides, it looks like Hiyami-san is over there comforting her anyway.

 

 

◆◆◆

 

 

 

"Has your clouds cleared up?"

 

Standing in front of Marin, Hiyami asked her this.

 

Marin replied with a wry smile.

 

"I can't quite say it's completely clear skies yet."

 

"Even so, if the weather is improving, that's what matters most. Clearing your clouds—frustrating as it is—was a role I couldn't fulfill."

 

While Hiyami was happy that Marin had been freed from her agony, she was also—unusually for her, truly unusually—feeling jealous.

 

"I was happy when I learned I had a blood connection with you, Marin. But in the end, a blood tie is just 'that and nothing more.' The relationships we build up over time are what truly matter to humans."

 

"Isn't that the same for you, Ruka?"

 

"For me?"

 

"Your father—if you don't think about the Kaisei kyou, you still respect him as a father, don't you?"

 

"...That's true. Even when I learned Setaguchi was my real father, my relationship with my dad didn't really change."

 

"Because you are strong, Ruka."

 

"I wonder. If I had been told when I was a child whose sense of self was still unformed, like you were, Marin, I might have wavered just like you."

 

The truth Marin's mother had told her was far too intense for a first-grader.

 

And the "womanly" face her mother showed in front of Setaguchi was also—a potent enough poison to completely warp Marin's worldview.

 

"If I had met you back then, Marin, maybe I could have supported you enough that you wouldn't have had to suffer."

 

"Heh, there's no point in such hypotheticals. Because we met after entering the academy, you are by my side right now, aren't you, Ruka? Who knows if the me from back then would have even been interested in a young Ruka."

 

"I've never doubted that part. Even if you hadn't shown interest, I would have won you over regardless."

 

Hiyami touched Marin's chin and smiled fearlessly.

 

It was a gesture so cheesy that if a normal person did it, you'd laugh, but the woman named Hiyami Ruka pulled it off flawlessly.

 

Marin blushed slightly and smiled.

 

"Did you know, Marin? When we first met at the academy, no matter how much love I whispered to you, you never once blushed."

 

"I see. So I was won over without even realizing it."

 

"That's exactly why it is frustrating—that I'm not the only one who can save you. Even though I want to be your perfect prince."

 

"How terrifying. Even though you are already flawlessly perfect, Ruka."

 

Marin grasped Hiyami's hand, intertwined their fingers, and brought her face closer.

 

"Besides, we have 'from now on,' don't we? A future much longer than our pasts."

 

Caught off guard, Hiyami blinked in surprise.

 

"Did I say something strange?"

 

Marin was bewildered by this reaction she had never seen before.

 

Then Hiyami's shoulders shook as she laughed.

 

"Haha... I just thought it was quite the killer line. Do you realize that what you just said is practically a marriage proposal?"

 

"A p-proposal?! I didn't mean it like that!"

 

"I won't let you take it back now. Since you said it, you're going to spend that long future with me."

 

And then, Hiyami touched Marin's cheek this time.

 

"...You never had any intention of letting me go anyway, did you? Do as you please."

 

Feeling the touch of those fingers against her skin, Marin closed her eyes.

 

◆◆◆ 

 

"Whoa... they're kissing."

 

While buried in Rea's chest, I heard that voice.

 

I figured Marin and Hiyami san were probably getting heated up over there.

 

"H-Hey Erika, they're kissing! Marin san and Hiyami san!"

 

"There's no older sister who wants to watch her younger sister kiss."

 

"...I guess that's true."

 

If anything, it was just gross. My feeling was entirely 'just go do that on your own time.'

 

It seemed like not just Rea, but Nemusia and Gii were staring intently too.

 

Ushizawa san and the others as well—oh, Inoue san just covered her eyes.

 

"Guu. In the end, I didn't really understand it at all."

 

In contrast to Nemusia and Rea, who were blushing, Gii was expressionless.

 

Well, she probably understood the kiss itself—what she didn't understand was how Marin and I could come to an understanding by fighting to the death.

 

"It can't be helped. You probably still don't understand concepts like family."

 

"Nanase Asami should have known. But no matter how much I read her memories, I can't understand it."

 

"Memories without emotions are nothing more than mere records," Nemusia noted.

 

"You just have to learn these things as Gii," Rea added.

 

I nodded at Rea's words.

 

Then, Gii's arm slithered out and wrapped around my arm.

 

"If I stick to Erika, will I understand?"

 

"Yeah, yeah, I think that's perfectly fine."

 

Is it really fine, though...? Now that she has a legitimate excuse, I feel like Gii is going to try to monopolize me even more than before.

 

Rea and Gii smiled at each other.

 

Rea seems to have plenty of leeway... and Gii seems confident in her own way... Well, whatever happens, happens.

 

"I wonder if the day will come when I, too, forget my loneliness," Nemusia murmured, looking out over the dead, expansive grasslands.

 

"Isn't that up to you, Nemusia? Whether you live as a queen, or as a single human being."

 

"It is a difficult question. It seems I will be agonizing over it for a while."

 

I'm sure Librio san wished for her to live as a human being.

 

But just because it was wished for, doesn't mean she can simply separate herself from her past.

 

It's true that Nemusia probably didn't become queen entirely of her own free will—but she undeniably worked so hard at it that she acted like a queen even in front of an unrelated outsider like me.

 

To continue living as a lonely queen, alongside the records.

 

That choice exists, and in a way, there might be values in this world that consider such a path "beautiful."

 

Personally, I really don't want her to do that, though.

 

"It's better not to think about it in binary terms of 0 or 1. You don't have to fully commit to one or the other."

 

"...Mm, is that so?"

 

"Did you think you might have to throw one away?"

 

"I may have thought that. This body also belongs to Ikuna Yumemi, so I was troubled by it. Haha, thinking of it like that makes me feel a bit lighter, perhaps."

 

Nemusia smiled.

 

She definitely seems to be struggling with it—but if she can smile like that, I probably don't need to worry excessively for now.

 

A blood-splattered sisters' quarrel might have actually served as a decent change of pace.

 

Being forced to watch something like that would probably rob anyone of the mental bandwidth to overthink things.

 

But I had exhausted my stamina.

 

Exhaustion was visible on Marin's face too.

 

In the end, it seemed we would need a bit more time to heal from that.

 

 

◇◇◇

 

 

 

Returning to the classroom, I sat down on a chair and took out my smartphone.

 

My status was displayed on the screen.

 

[Kuragane Erika]

[Level: 102]

[HP: 90/90]

[MP: 60/60]

[Strength: 50]

[Magic: 20]

[Stamina: 30]

[Agility: 80]

[Remaining Status Pts: 42]

[Remaining Skill Pts: 21]

 

I hadn't touched it since before fighting Ooki and her group, so quite a few points had piled up.

 

"Whoa, you're already at that level?"

 

Rea, sitting in the next chair, scooted her entire chair right next to mine and peered at the screen.

 

Just as I thought that, something warm and soft squished against the back of my head.

 

"Which means we're getting stronger too."

 

"Gii, you're heavy."

 

"It's the weight of my love."

 

"Physically! Good grief..."

 

The presence of Nemusia, who was staring at the screen from an appropriate distance, felt like a blessing.

 

"This means I can use even more powerful magic now."

 

"Remember how I said we were going to smash the castle from the outside? But I don't have any skills like that. So I figured I'd learn some beforehand."

 

"I might want something like that too. The defensive walls are handy, though."

 

"I feel a lack of firepower too. I want something that explodes flashily, like BOOM!"

 

"Take turns, starting with me. Actually, it might be better not to use up all your skill points."

 

"Why?"

 

Gii tilted her head. Rea and Nemusia had the same reaction.

 

"Because once we get outside, combat skills aren't going to be all that useful. If you use production-type skills smartly, I think you could become a billionaire, you know?"

 

"So that's what you were thinking about."

 

Mitsurugi san, who happened to be walking past, looked at me with cold eyes.

 

"We fought so hard to get this far, don't you think we deserve to reap some sweet rewards?"

 

"We don't even know if we'll keep these powers once we get out."

 

"We don't know, but I think the chances are high that they will remain."

 

"I agree. I doubt something that has integrated this deeply into our bodies will just disappear so easily."

 

"But, since we'll be separating from the Kaigyo, we can't expect any further growth."

 

"Oh, is that why you said it's better not to use all our skill points, Erika?"

 

"Exactly. You're interested too, right, Mitsurugi san?"

 

"...Well, it would be a lie to say I'm not. Do I have them too? Those 'skill points' or whatever."

 

I switched the screen on my smartphone and displayed Mitsurugi san's status.

 

Since she got a share of the experience from defeating Ooki's group and the guys in black tights, her level had already risen past 70.

 

"With this much, you can learn whatever you want. For now, I'll have you learn Healing and Cure."

 

"Hey, why are you doing that without asking?"

 

"Magic that can heal any wound or illness. Honestly, just having these will change your life, don't you think?"

 

"That does... sound convenient, but."

 

To begin with, from what Librio san told us, there has never been a human who was eaten by a Kaigyo and managed to escape.

 

Thanks to the irregularity known as Giraiguu, we could see the possibility of escaping.

 

Of course, whoever created this "system" must have hoped that someday, someone who gained these abilities would escape the Kaigyo's predation.

 

But they likely never thought about how to clean things up once someone actually succeeded.

 

"There are a lot of other skills I'm curious about. There was someone using an agriculture skill at that hotel, right?"

 

"That was Ootsuki san. Crops were growing in less than a day."

 

"That sounds super convenient too, and there are all kinds of other categories. Sewing, woodworking, furniture making... and then there's the mechanical engineering that Myourenji kun was doing. Don't you think taking these into the outside world would be incredible?"

 

"Sewing... Ai might be interested in that."

 

Ushizawa san, who was clinging to Inoue san, reacted.

 

She had been in the party for a long time too, so her level had gone up more than enough.

 

"Then, Ushizawa san, want to try leveling up your Sewing skill?"

 

"Yeah, please."

 

"Just want to raise it by 1 to test it? Or should we max it out at 10?"

 

"Max is fine. Ai thinks sewing will definitely be convenient."

 

True, we might not really feel the effects if we just raised it by 1.

 

I manipulated Ushizawa san's skill points, maxing out her Sewing skill to 10.

 

"I leveled it up. Anything change?"

 

"Umm..."

 

"Try focusing really hard and thinking, 'I want to use the sewing skill'."

 

"Nn... mm, I want to use it... I wanna use it..."

 

Ushizawa san repeatedly chanted like a Buddhist incantation, wrinkling her brow.

 

However, absolutely nothing seemed to happen.

 

"I definitely leveled the skill up, though..."

 

As I was wondering about this, Hiiro san noticed something.

 

"Hey, Ai. Hasn't the screen on your smartphone on the desk changed?"

 

"Huh? Oh, you're right. Something is displayed on Ai's phone. A list... of things I can make?"

 

"Then maybe you use it from there."

 

Adding other people to the party hadn't caused any changes to their smartphones—but now that I think about it, stuff like the Map skill was learned individually, wasn't it?

 

So acquiring a skill affects the smartphone itself.

 

Ushizawa san immediately operated her smartphone, attempting to activate the Sewing skill.

 

"Ai's inventory says I have materials like cloth, even though I don't remember getting any."

 

"How many does it say you have?"

 

"31."

 

"That's the same amount as mine. Since we're in the same party, the items are probably shared."

 

I had been picking up anything that looked like it could be used as materials around the school building and the amusement park and stuffing them into my smartphone.

 

I barely used anything other than food, I guess because I never picked up any production skills.

 

"Can Ai use them?"

 

"Totally fine, do whatever you want."

 

"Then..."

 

"Hey, hey, Ai, what are you gonna make?"

 

"I was thinking, maybe a stuffed toy of that."

 

"It looks like the only material required is cloth... but can you really make it with just that?"

 

"It says I can, so Ai will test it out for now."

 

Hiiro san and Ushizawa san conversed with Inoue san sandwiched between them.

 

I thought they should just give her some space—but Inoue san looked somewhat happy regardless, so I guess supply was meeting demand.

 

"Then with this... Skill, activate!"

Ushizawa san tapped the smartphone screen.

 

Suddenly, light emanated in front of her, and the crafted item floated in mid-air.

 

What appeared was a purple-bodied, half-melted—to put it bluntly, almost zombie-like—mascot.

 

"It's done! A Hidorodoro kun plushie!"

 

"Wow, amazing! Ai, it's perfectly Hidorodoro-kun! Plus it feels so nice, it's so fluffy I can't believe it's made entirely out of cloth!"

 

"The design came out really well too. Ai had to picture the shape in my head, so I was worried, but the modeling is perfect."

 

"If this was a crane game prize, I might drop thousands of yen on it!"

 

"I get that. Ai wouldn't hesitate to use 10,000 yen bill either."

 

The two of them were getting all excited about it.

 

"Is that gross-looking character popular or something?"

 

"It's popular in certain circles, I guess. I don't really know much about it."

 

So it actually is popular.

 

However, naturally, Inoue san, who was sandwiched between them, was bewildered.

 

"Um, Hiiro... is that plushie... cute?"

 

Pointing at the thing Hiiro san was hugging tightly, Inoue san asked.

 

"Yeah, super cute!"

 

Getting a response with such a brilliant smile only confused her further.

 

"Don't you think it's cute, Older Sister?"

 

"Huh? No... well, if you and Ai chan say it's cute, then I guess it's cute... ahaha..."

 

Inoue san, bewildered by the generation gap.

 

It wasn't just limited to that character; she had been disconnected from the real world for six years, so there would probably be many other things that confused her.

 

That, too, might be one of the things to look forward to.

 

"I can do things like that too...?"

 

"Well, you can do it after we get outside, so take your time thinking about it. Assuming you don't mind interacting with me in the outside world, that is."

 

"Everyone who would complain about something like that is already dead."

 

"Oh right, I killed them. Then there's no problem at all."

 

When I laughed brightly, Mitsurugi san looked a bit troubled, perhaps unable to keep up with my vibe.

 

We were only talking like this because it was a state of emergency; normally, we're the kind of people who would never interact.

 

When it comes to casual, everyday conversation, it's probably natural that we don't quite sync up.

 

"You all seem to be having an interesting conversation. The future, huh? That's my favorite word right now."

 

"You're quite elated, Hiyami san."

 

"Of course."

 

Hiyami san walked up to me, bringing Marin along with her.

 

We had rested quite a bit since then, and Marin's physical condition seemed to have recovered as well.

 

"My love has finally reached Marin, so my future is completely rosy!"

 

"That's embarrassing."

 

"I can't stop my desire to express this joy! But after going outside, huh... I haven't really thought about how to utilize these abilities."

 

"That's surprising. I thought you were the type to look far ahead, Hiyami san."

 

"Believe it or not, I've been desperate just trying to survive."

 

"Thinking about the future in that school building... only someone as peculiar as you, Sister, would be capable of that."

 

"Sister..."

 

"Get used to it."

 

"You really don't have to force yourself to call me that."

 

"Get used to it!"

 

"...Haah."

 

"Haha, think of it as her way of drawing a line and making a fresh start. Won't you accept it, as her older sister?"

 

This was the first time anyone had said "as her older sister" to me.

 

It's true that I am her older sister, but the reason we haven't been until now lies with Marin, not me.

 

So shouldn't Marin be the one to make concessions? That's what I think, anyway.

 

But I could easily see that saying that would just complicate things, so I held it in.

 

Like an older sister should.

 

"Fine, I'll do my best. Anyway—"

 

Continuing this topic was a pain, so I forcibly changed the flow of the conversation.

 

"In your case, Hiyami san, you don't even need to go out of your way to get skills. You have Gyges special ability, right? If you utilize that, you could probably do whatever you want outside."

 

"True. I just have to do exactly what I'm about to do right now, but on the outside."

 

What she's about to do right now—in other words, it seemed she came to say her greetings before moving out.

 

Using Gyges ability to turn invisible, she would sneak into the castle.

 

She'd investigate to see if there were any survivors, and if there were, escape with them.

 

"Oh, you're heading out already. We should start preparing too, then."

 

"I plan to do this carefully, so you don't need to head out for another two hours."

 

"Understood. That's more than enough time; our stamina should recover by then."

 

"I'll be going, then. Pray that there are survivors."

 

Saying that, Hiyami san left the classroom.

 

It looked like Marin intended to see her off outside.

 

The expression of Marin walking beside her was the very picture of a maiden in love—it was so drastically different from her usual self that my brain just couldn't quite process it.

 

"Marin san was finally able to be honest with her own feelings. It's all thanks to you, Erika."

 

"Yeah... well... good for her."

 

Come to think of it, I used to think I couldn't care less about what kind of expression Marin made.

 

The very fact that I'm bothering to care about it now means the way I look at Marin has changed too.

 

Some things change exactly as you want them to, and some change in ways you don't.

 

But up until now, my life had always been completely predictable. A dead end.

 

In that sense, I might have actually completed my escape from that hopeless, hellish place a long time ago.

 

Now, reality just needs to catch up.

 

If so, there is no reason we should fail.

 

There's no need to think too deeply about it.

 

I just have to use every ounce of power I possess to blow a hole in this closed world.