"...Kotori..."
Shido lay on the bed in the infirmary, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Although yesterday, under the staff's arrangement, he had been forced to come rest in Fraxinus' medical room, he still couldn't forget that figure on the rooftop of Raizen High School—
that crimson-haired Spirit, who was also his little sister.
Kotori was a Spirit.
Having lived with Kotori for several years, Shido didn't know how to face her now.
And those memories that surfaced in his mind also greatly disturbed him.
Scenes like illustrations of hell strung together, forming fragmented bits of memory.
Even so, those fragments contained a great deal of information—so much that every time Shido tried to recall them, he wished he could uncover everything at once.
But each time he tried to recall the details, a splitting headache would force him to stop.
"Kotori... just what are you..."
Thinking of the same healing flames that had burst from Kotori's body after she was injured—the same as the ones that had once appeared on himself—Shido grew even more uneasy.
That could only mean one thing—he had once sealed Kotori's powers as a Spirit.
Perhaps that was why Kotori had been so calm before, letting him face Spirits directly.
And the time that sealing took place was likely five years ago, during the Great Fire.
All the details of that sealing were probably hidden within those fragmented memories.
"...Damn it!"
The more he thought, the more his head throbbed. Shido slammed a fist on the bed, took a deep breath, and forced himself to calm down.
"...Shido?"
At that moment, Reine Murasame walked in, dark circles heavy beneath her eyes—her usual state.
"Reine? And—"
Looking past her pine-green uniform, Shido saw a timid blue-haired girl standing behind her.
"Hi, Shido. What's this, you look quite lively! You made me worry for nothing~"
It seemed the voice came not from the girl, but from the comically shaped puppet on her left hand.
"Shido... you're safe... I'm really glad..."
After the puppet's exaggerated tone, the girl herself spoke softly, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Ah, Yoshino and Yoshinon are here too."
Shido scratched his head and turned his gaze to Reine.
"So, Reine, how's everything now?"
"Hmm... it should all be fine."
"Should?!"
Hearing that uncertain word, Shido became agitated.
The shock of "Kotori being a Spirit" had almost made him forget his duties—and the other important matters from yesterday.
"R-right! You said should—wait, don't tell me... Tohka's just sleeping, right? She's okay, isn't she? What about Kotori? She's fine too, right? She appeared out of nowhere... and what was with her appearance anyway...?! And Origami? She was injured pretty badly, wasn't she?"
"Calm down, Shido."
Even as Reine said this, Shido couldn't control his emotions.
Or rather, if Shido didn't get agitated like this, he wouldn't be Shido.
"Right! Mana—what about Mana? She's fine too, right?! She must've received proper treatment? And, and... what about everyone at school? Raizen High was completely frozen by Tenqi ... they're all okay, right? Everyone..."
Before he could finish, Shido suddenly stopped speaking—
or rather, was made to stop.
Reine had wrapped her arms around Shido's head, pressing it into her chest.
"Mm... mmph..."
All of Shido's attention was stolen by the warm, soft sensation against his face, and he temporarily abandoned all his questions.
"There, there, calm down."
Like soothing a child, Reine gently stroked Shido's hair until he settled down.
Only when Shido lightly patted her arm did she release him.
"Feeling calmer now?"
"...Yeah."
Shido gasped for breath and looked up at her.
Meanwhile, behind them, Yoshino covered her flushed face with her hands—but still peeked through her fingers, having seen the entire scene.
"Don't worry, everyone's safe. As far as I know, no one lost their life."
Reine glanced at Shido and continued,
"Origami Tobiichi and Mana Takamiya were taken away by AST members who arrived later. They should've been sent to the JSDF's Tenguu Hospital for treatment using manifestation equipment.
As for Tohka—though injured—she's in good condition. She's been fussing about wanting to take care of you, even though she's not fully recovered yet."
"As for the others—though Tenqi froze Raizen High School and everyone inside—it didn't cause any fatalities. After being thawed, there were no serious problems; aside from catching a slight cold, they just need some rest. Don't worry, everyone's okay."
"In the end... it's still like this."
Shido clenched his fists, biting his lip, as if blaming his own weakness.
In the end, he hadn't solved anything.
He had said he would save Kurumi, save Mana, even save Tenqi —but because of his own helplessness, he accomplished nothing.
Tenqi aside—Kurumi and Mana were both gravely injured, Origami and Tohka were caught up in the battle, even the teachers and students at school were involved—
and in the end, he still failed to seal Kurumi's power.
"D—damn it...!"
Shido cursed in frustration and slammed the bed again.
"Shido, you've already done your best. Don't be so hard on yourself."
"But... but still, all of this, I..."
"No one anticipated Kurumi's abilities, and everyone was wary of Tenqi , who was watching from the sidelines. In fact, having two Spirits appear at once and still causing no casualties in Tenguu City—that's already something to be grateful for.
This isn't the end. There will be more chances—you'll have opportunities to talk with Kurumi again."
"..."
Shido fell silent.
He recalled what Tenqi had said to him on the rooftop yesterday:
> "Looks like the only hard thing about you is your mouth. Stubborn to the end."
Those words were harsh—and throughout the entire fight, Tenqi had never once looked at him with respect.
Perhaps unable to accept that the first Kurumi had been persuaded by him, Tenqi had directly used her Angel to destroy her.
From her perspective, he was a powerless fool, spouting empty ideals without the strength to back them up.
At first, Shido had thought Tenqi was simply a twisted, lost soul, and hadn't taken her words seriously.
But now that he'd calmed down and thought carefully—
Tenqi 's words weren't entirely wrong.
He was too weak.
When Tohka, Origami, Mana, and Kurumi were fighting, he couldn't do anything—only watch as Kurumi defeated them one by one.
Even though he carried the powers of several Spirits within him, Shido's strength was still that of an ordinary human.
More often than not, he had to rely on Tohka and the others to protect him.
If the Spirits still had to fight even after being sealed—then what difference did sealing them make?
Worse yet, since their power was sealed within him, they couldn't even unleash their full strength with their Astral Dresses. Otherwise, Tohka wouldn't have been defeated so easily by Kurumi yesterday.
Thinking that far, Shido felt even more frustrated.
Why couldn't he be just a little stronger?
If he were stronger—
Could he have protected Kurumi when Tenqi tried to kill her?
Could he have shielded Tohka and the others from harm?
Could he have protected Kurumi even when Kotori attacked?
He didn't know the answers.
He only knew one thing—
If he stayed this weak, he would only keep dragging everyone down and cause more needless suffering.
Before, he had thought that sealing Spirits and keeping them from being detected by AST's Spirit Sensors would be enough.
Now, he knew—without real strength, he couldn't protect the Spirits he had already sealed from the pressures closing in on all sides.
And if he wasn't strong enough, Tenqi would never take him seriously—let alone allow him to save her.
Of course, that could wait. That wasn't the main issue now.
"...Reine, can you take me to see Kotori?"
"...Of course. No problem."
Sensing the intense emotions swirling in Shido's heart, Reine's eyelid twitched slightly.