Chapter 12: I Was Deceived by a Bad Man
"If I weren't confident, would I have come here to find you? I know your abilities, but I can also resist some of a Spirit's powers. So forcibly extracting memories from me is impossible. Moreover, even if you devour us, you're no match for the Origin Spirit."
Seeing Kurumi's reaction, Satoru continued speaking calmly, appearing very composed.
And though Kurumi looked like she might strike at any moment, she actually took no action.
Despite the fact that he and Nia combined were no match for Kurumi in terms of strength, he held her weakness in his grasp.
For Kurumi, who had gone through great pains to find information about the Origin Spirit, she absolutely couldn't afford to risk cutting off this lead.
"I know you're not purely evil. In fact, you initially just wanted to eliminate wicked monsters but were exploited. The people you've killed before were all scumbags—you never intended to harm the innocent."
So at this moment, he seized the opportunity to strike while the iron was hot, speaking softer words with a sincere expression.
For someone like Kurumi, threats alone wouldn't work well—genuine emotion was far more effective.
"...Sigh, it seems Satoru is the most unfathomable one after all~ I understand. I won't lay a hand on you. But in return, I hope you can tell me about the identity of the Origin Spirit."
After hesitating for a while, Kurumi finally sighed and revealed a somewhat bitter smile.
Kurumi wasn't a beast. The reason she had done so many crazy things was because of the convictions she had held onto in her heart—emotional convictions.
All this time, she had been fighting alone, always seen as a calamity and an evil presence.
So now, suddenly encountering someone who acknowledged and understood her—honestly, this feeling was quite peculiar.
Moreover, if devouring Nia truly led to irreversible consequences, she really didn't want to take that risk.
"Fine. But I still can't fully trust you right now, so I need some time. If nothing bad happens by the time we graduate high school, I'll tell you its identity."
"...As expected, Satoru came prepared~ But after searching so hard, returning empty-handed feels a bit too cruel, don't you think?"
"Then there's nothing I can do. If I reveal all my cards at once, it would be difficult for me too."
"Ahh~ It feels like I've been tricked by a bad man~"
Kurumi chuckled lightly in self-deprecation, then glanced at Nia beside her, her expression once again showing a hint of complexity.
From both of them, she couldn't find any information about the Origin Spirit.
But there was a slight difference—she had seen fragments of Nia's memories, yet Satoru's memories were completely blank, as if there was nothing there.
In other words, his information didn't come from Nia's "Omniscience" ability.
It truly was unique to him alone.
Well, at most, it's less than a year and a half. Since she currently had no leads on the Origin Spirit anyway, she might as well continue gathering information during this time.
"Then it's settled. I'll keep my promise, but please keep yours too, Satoru. Otherwise, I think I might do something extreme~"
So Kurumi also smiled and left these words for Satoru, then vanished into the endless darkness beneath her feet with a faint smile.
After all, Satoru made a good point—even if she devoured Nia's Reiryoku, there was no guarantee she could defeat that enigmatic Origin Spirit.
Better to place her hopes on the Future…
Ah, she could only hope this long-cherished wish would one day be fulfilled.
"Whew, things have finally settled down for now. Nia, you okay?"
Seeing Kurumi leave, Satoru let out a small sigh of relief and relaxed into his usual easygoing expression.
Of course, he knew Kurumi was probably still watching from the shadows.
But it didn't matter—Kurumi kept her word, so they were safe for the time being.
"Okay my foot! You knew how dangerous she was, yet you still came out here!"
Meanwhile, Nia was clearly furious. She stomped over, grabbed his cheeks, and started tugging angrily.
"Couldn't be helped. If my girlfriend's in danger, I can't just let her face it alone~"
"...Hmph, nice words. If you really cared, you should've explained things sooner. By the way, your ability isn't like mine, is it? Do you just know everything?"
"Not that convenient. I only know bits and pieces. But hey, doesn't this mean we've got a bit of a 'couple's resemblance' going on~"
"...Tch, how many women are you gonna have a 'couple's resemblance' with?"