With the weight lifted from her heart, Hiyori looked a little drained, her eyes red.
Tendou Juka immediately stepped forward to support her. "Hiyori, you're sweating so much! I'll take you to your room to wash your face and change!"
"Mm... thank you, Juka." Hiyori nodded gently and followed Juka into the inner room.
In the living room, the tense atmosphere finally eased completely.
The earnest Kagami Arata was crouching on the floor, wiping up the spilled tea with a troubled expression as he continued to process the miraculous scene he had just witnessed.
Yet Tendou Souji, standing nearby, did not look entirely relieved even after letting out a long breath.
His brows drew together slightly. Deep in those ever-confident, aloof eyes, a rare hint of uncertainty over philosophy and humanity emerged.
"Lin Xiao."
Tendou Souji suddenly spoke, breaking the silence in the living room with unprecedented seriousness:
"Since you have so much top-secret information that defies common sense... I want to ask you something."
Kagami stopped wiping the floor and looked up at Tendou in confusion.
Tendou's voice was low, weighed down by an unshakable gravity:
"Based on what you told us earlier... besides Hiyori, there's a young master in Shibuya who calls himself 'the man who stands at the pinnacle of everything.' His name is Jin Kagami."
"His true identity is actually the Scorpion Worm that killed the real Jin Kagami back then and mimicked him."
"But not only did he inherit all the original's memories and emotions perfectly, his mimicry went so deep that he completely forgot he was actually a Worm.
He swore to kill every Worm to avenge his sister, and all along, he has been wielding his sword with a human will."
Tendou looked straight into Lin Xiao's eyes and asked, stressing every word: