Fate: Hero of Justice Takeover-Chapter 216: [] The Anomalies of This World

[019: Araya Souren]

[Character Information: A classmate of Touko Aozaki during her time in London...]

[Hidden Information: His skill in crafting puppets is also exceptional. Although not on par with Touko Aozaki, he can create substitutes for the physical body. However, unlike Touko's method of reincarnation after death, his approach involves transplanting the brain into a new body. He even planned to transplant his brain into Shiki Ryougi's body to reach the Root.

By pursuing the "Prototype of the Soul," he mastered the technique of awakening Origins and awakened Shirazumi Lio's Origin. His own Origin is "Stillness." After awakening, he gained the ability to move and be protected as a concept of stillness within his bounded fields, becoming nearly immortal.]

[Recording Conditions (1/1)]:

[•Kill Araya Souren. (Completed)]

[Record Condition 1 Reward: 'Araya Souren's Bounded Field Notes (Complete Version)'!]

"So... this is why you came to my workshop in the middle of the night, covered in blood, and woke me up?"

Touko Aozaki, who had been rudely awakened in the middle of the night, had her hair standing on end. A cigarette dangled from her right hand, and her eyes were filled with irritation.

In front of her, Sakatsuki, now shrunk to the size of a young boy with white hair and golden eyes, was calmly tearing off the fabric that had stuck to his wounds and wrapping himself in bandages, turning himself into a mummy.

"Aren't you afraid I might take advantage of the situation and capture you?"

"First, I don't believe you would do that. Second, all the good stuff is stored in my imaginary space, which you can't access." Sakatsuki replied leisurely. "Third, you're no match for me... Oh, thanks."

Taking the tape handed to him by his shadow, Sakatsuki nodded with a smile and continued wrapping bandages around his body. "Although I was completely countered by Shiki Ryougi, you don't have eyes that can see death, Touko. My shadow isn't afraid of you."

"I may not have those eyes, but I'm quite skilled at meeting deadlines." The discomfort from low blood sugar gradually faded, and Touko's breathing steadied. She lit her cigarette and took a satisfying drag. "And according to what you said... that Shiki Ryougi is a being connected to the Root, right? Whose request could wake her up, and what kind of threat would require her to intervene personally?"

"That question is simple. I knew the moment she mentioned it." Sakatsuki pointed to the ground, then at Touko.

"Me?"

"No, humanity and this planet." Sakatsuki stopped there, and after a moment of contemplation, Touko Aozaki also showed a look of understanding.

"No wonder she was willing to intervene. After all, she is also a part of 'humanity,' a being that grew on this 'planet'... Hey, hey, saying that actually makes me a bit nervous. What kind of monster is hiding in your shadow?!"

Before Sakatsuki could answer, his shadow rose up, its dark, misty mouth grinning menacingly at Touko.

"Quiet, behave." Sakatsuki didn't even look up, patting the shadow's head and signaling it to retreat. "Strictly speaking, it's not in my shadow. It was sealed in the imaginary space by someone (me). It's just that I have the skill of the Shadow of the Imaginary Number, so it can move around in my shadow."

"So, you could completely seal it in the imaginary space and prevent it from coming out, right?"

"Yes, but it's meaningless." Sakatsuki said. "Since that guy (me) sealed it, it means that while it is dangerous, there's no reason to kill it. So, the compromise is to keep it confined near me."

"Isn't it possible that killing it would cause greater harm, or that it's simply unkillable?" Touko shuddered just looking at the form lurking in the darkness. "I don't think that thing has any goodwill toward humans."

"No, I know that guy (me) all too well." Sakatsuki shook his head. "With his strength, there's almost no creature he can't kill. And if killing it would cause greater harm... Hah, if that were the case, he wouldn't have entrusted it to me."

"Sounds like a good guy."

"Yeah, after all, it's me." Sakatsuki finally finished bandaging and hopped off the chair. "And that's why I won't give up anything he entrusted to me—even if Shiki Ryougi slashed me twenty times."

You know, even Arcueid was only cut into seventeen pieces by Shiki.

Even though Shiki Ryougi's target wasn't Sakatsuki, a few of those slashes still hit his "lines of death," leaving him severely injured.

"Tsk tsk, when I opened the door and saw you, I almost thought Frankenstein had come knocking."

"Cut it out. I'm not Frankenstein. Besides, try fighting that kind of freak yourself. Even if not all the cuts were on the lines of death, it was still dangerous enough." Recalling the girl's god-slaying eyes, even Sakatsuki felt a bit uneasy. "If it weren't for the Third Magic keeping me alive and my dragon body being tough enough, I'd be calling you to collect my corpse."

"So, you turned into this?" Touko squinted at the boy, who was less than 1.3 meters tall. "Do you get younger the more injured you are?"

"It's the opposite. The younger the body, the better it is for recovery." Sakatsuki pinched his small arms and legs, laughing helplessly. "That's the benefit of the Third Magic. As long as the soul remains intact, the body can change however it needs to."

"Besides, although it looks a bit miserable, it's not without its benefits." The white-haired, golden-eyed boy showed a strange expression. "For example, the thing living in my shadow has its favorability level going up up or something like that... Ow ow ow, I didn't say anything."

Satisfied, the shadowy claw that had reached out retracted.

"You already said it out loud. Do you think it still matters?"

"Well, it depends on how it feels." Sakatsuki shrugged, his expression both casual and serious.

"Whether it likes it or not, it's destined to stay by my side in the future. I don't hide my habits or thoughts. What it sees will always be the most authentic version of me."

"If it accepts my personality and agrees with my actions, then this will be its home, and I will accompany it until the very end."

"If it rejects everything about me and wants to break free, then I will witness it, just as it witnesses me, until the fateful end where one of us dies."

"This is the karma I've created, the fate I've chosen. Naturally, it should begin with me and end with me. No one else needs to intervene along the way."

Sakatsuki looked down at the still, shadowy surface of the imaginary space, the corner of his mouth curling up.

"Besides, I've never had any sense of mission. If it wants to, letting it destroy the world wouldn't be out of the question."

Touko shivered. "Hey, you! Do I have to kick you out?!"

"Hehe, Touko-nee~" The serious topic over, Sakatsuki's voice suddenly became as 'innocent' as a certain detective's. "So, could you help poor, weak, and helpless me with one more thing? Like, going to Misaki City to retrieve the last piece for me..."

"Get out!"

With a loud bang, the unscrupulous boy was sent flying out of the room, followed by the sound of a door slamming shut. Clearly, the puppeteer was thoroughly annoyed by Sakatsuki.

Given what she knew about Sakatsuki recently, this guy probably already knew that she had been cursed by her sister and couldn't go to Misaki City.

What kind of request was that? It was clearly just teasing her!

"If you want to turn into a Madagascar rainbow frog, go do it yourself. I curse you to be turned into a specimen, you jerk!"

Touko Aozaki angrily punched her pillow, then buried her head under the blankets.

"Damn it, if only Beo hadn't returned to the outer world before the fight..."

The door was tightly shut, and the glow of runes made it clear that the owner wanted no further disturbances.

"Ah, she's really hot-tempered. My wounds are splitting open again." Sakatsuki scratched his head and got up from the ground. "Well, I'll just find a hotel to stay the night. No matter what, I need to get some sleep tonight..."

At this point, Sakatsuki paused, suddenly recalling the conversation he had with Shiki Ryougi after the battle.

***

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