I Don't Want to See That Sad, Lost Look on Your Face

Sandalphon's final slash tore apart the already devastated building once more.

Her figure began to blur, wavering like a reflection in water. Her amethyst eyes took one deep look at Qian Huanyue and the human behind her, filled with lingering hostility, a trace of confusion, and bottomless exhaustion.

In the end, her figure dissolved into specks of purple spirit-particle light, like fireflies scattered by the wind, vanishing completely into the air as she returned to the neighboring realm.

Qian Huanyue swept her gaze over the battlefield and noticed that although Origami Tobiichi looked somewhat bedraggled, she had not suffered any serious injuries. Most of the other AST members had merely had their equipment damaged and lost their ability to fight.

She let out a soft breath. Looking at the incapacitated AST members, she no longer had any reason to fight either.

She turned around and looked at Shiori, who was still frozen in place, then waved a hand in front of her eyes.

"Snap out of it, Shido. The show's over, you know?" Her tone returned to its usual gentleness, and she truly was trying to comfort her.

Shiori blinked hard and opened her mouth, only to find that she still could not form a proper sound. Her mind was a mess, overwhelmed by too much information.

A spacequake? And... Qian Huanyue... and Origami Tobiichi, her classmate.

Qian Huanyue did not give her much time to sort out her thoughts. She naturally took her hand. "All right, this isn't a place to linger. If we stay any longer, those annoying 'flies' will swarm us again."

AST had no real killing power, but DEM was another matter.

She had never fought the woman called Ellen Mira Mathers, the so-called "World's Strongest Magician," but the person behind her was a genuine madman.

The vibrations in space subsided, and the piercing alarms stopped. Only the wind's mournful howl through the ruins remained, along with the faint sounds of AST members in the distance reorganizing their equipment.

As she spoke, she used one of the blades of Seraph of Thousand Blades in her other hand to cut open space.

"Come on. Let me show you a shortcut." Qian Huanyue gave Shiori no chance to refuse, pulling the still-dazed girl one step into the spatial rift.

Only then did the AST members left behind truly relax. Many collapsed weakly to the ground, their faces blank with the confusion of survivors.

The scenery around them changed in an instant.

The familiar, ordinary breeze now blowing against her face gave Shiori an unprecedented sense of closeness and peace, pulling her from her daze.

The gorgeous Godly Spirit Garment: Senban around Qian Huanyue quietly faded like an erased painting. The black gown, crystalline skirt hem, hazy veil, thigh-high black stockings, lace gloves... all the elements representing power and mystery turned into flickering motes of light and vanished in an instant, revealing her everyday clothes beneath.

It was a simple yet exceptionally pure white dress. The soft cotton fabric had a natural texture, and the hem fell to her knees, fluttering lightly in the breeze. A slender pale-blue ribbon was tied around her waist in an exquisite bow, outlining her slim figure.

From a dark night spirit to a girl in white, the extreme contrast made everything Shiori had just experienced feel even more like a bizarre dream.

Yet the lingering tremors in her body and the images that would not leave her mind screamed one thing at her—the whole thing had been real.

Just yesterday, they had eaten together.

"I..." Shiori finally found her voice, though it was painfully dry. She looked at Qian Huanyue, her eyes full of confusion and uncertainty, but not fear. "Qian Huanyue... those... Origami... she..."

Her words were completely incoherent. She had no idea how to organize them.

Qian Huanyue merely blinked, wearing an almost carefree smile. "Hm? What about me? That was AST. They specialize in hunting down evil Spirits like us. Origami? The short-haired white-haired member? Ah, isn't she fine? Damage like that is nothing with their technology."

That overly casual attitude only left Shiori even more at a loss.

Had he been frightened?

Seeing Shiori stand there in silence, as if she did not know how to face her, the deliberately maintained carefree smile on Qian Huanyue's face slowly faded like the receding tide. In the end, only a faint, unreadable calm remained.

She released Shiori's hand and shifted her gaze slightly, letting it rest on the high night sky above the rooftop.

"Even if I look human on the outside, after what just happened, I'm no longer the Qian Huanyue you can calmly eat and chat with in your eyes, am I?"

Qian Huanyue's tone was flat, without reproach. It sounded more like she was stating something she had expected all along. "After all, I'm a Spirit... an existence that causes spacequakes and is hunted by them."

Those light words cut into Shiori's heart like a dull blade. Looking at Qian Huanyue's averted gaze, at that profile made especially distant by the moonlight, Shiori felt the terror of losing something important explode in her chest, mixed with the near-resigned loneliness in Qian Huanyue's words, becoming a burning impulse.

No!

That wasn't it!

"That's not it—!"

The cry was even louder than Shiori had expected, trembling with a slight crack in her voice. It rang particularly clearly across the silent rooftop, so much that the voice changer around her neck nearly gave her away.

She suddenly reached out, not to pull Qian Huanyue back, but to tightly clasp the hand Qian Huanyue had just released with both of hers. Her fingertips turned faintly white from the force, as though she feared Qian Huanyue would truly turn away and disappear into the night.

Qian Huanyue seemed startled by the sudden intensity of her reaction and turned back in surprise.

Shiori looked up at her anxiously. The confusion and uncertainty in her brown eyes were gone, replaced by an incredibly clear determination and urgency. Her chest rose and fell violently as her words burst out like a broken dam:

"That's not it! It's not like that!" She shook her head hard, unconsciously tightening her grip on Qian Huanyue's hand. "Qian Huanyue is Qian Huanyue! You're the person who eats with me, jokes with me, and protects me when I'm in danger!"

Her voice trembled with emotion, but compared to the truth of Spirits and spacequakes, what she felt more strongly now was the fear that an insurmountable distance would form between her and the person before her.

The image of the purple-haired Spirit before she vanished flashed through her mind—those amethyst eyes full of bottomless exhaustion and loneliness. That gaze hurt Shiori, making her involuntarily recall the days and nights before the Itsuka family adopted her, when no one in the orphanage understood her and she had curled up alone in a corner.

She knew that feeling of being abandoned by the world all too well.

She could not let Qian Huanyue wear that same sad, lost expression too—absolutely not!

"Pfft!" She finally could not help laughing softly. Instinctively, she wanted to raise a hand to cover her slightly burning ears with her fingertips, but Shiori was holding both of her hands, leaving her unable to move. Of course, she was not trying to hide anything; she was simply embarrassed by those overly straightforward words.

"Has anyone ever told you this, Shido?" She tilted her head slightly, letting the wind brush her bangs aside as silver strands slid across her cheeks, tickling her. "The things you say... can be really cheesy sometimes."

Because she knew Shido meant every word sincerely, it felt especially cheesy.

"Eh!"

Shiori suddenly came back to herself and realized she had been tightly holding Qian Huanyue's hands the whole time. As if she had touched something scorching hot, she hurriedly let go. Her cheeks instantly turned bright red, even redder than Qian Huanyue's ear tips.

"I-I wasn't... um..." She stammered, trying to explain, only to find that the more she explained, the worse it sounded. In the end, she could only lower her head, her voice growing quieter. "I was just... telling the truth..."

"Mhm, I believe you."

Qian Huanyue relaxed and narrowed her eyes, quietly letting out a breath of relief. This was the Shido she knew.

"By the way, why did you come here?" Huanyue asked despite already knowing the answer.

A delayed bolt of lightning struck Shiori's mind, and her eyes flew wide open.

"...Kotori!" she cried out, her voice filled with belated panic. "Kotori! My little sister! She's still at that restaurant! I came to find her, but... there was a spacequake over there just now! What if she...?!"

Overwhelming fear swallowed her, making her forget her embarrassment entirely. If her little sister had come to harm because she had been late... the thought nearly made her suffocate with a splitting headache.

Seeing Shiori on the verge of tears, Qian Huanyue flicked her forehead.

There was a soft thunk. It did not hurt, but it was enough to make the panicked Shiori freeze, as if someone had pressed pause on her chaotic thoughts.

Qian Huanyue lightly facepalmed inwardly.

Was she supposed to tell this frantic "big brother" that his seemingly innocent little sister was not only perfectly safe, but was currently sitting comfortably on the bridge of an airship ten thousand meters in the sky, sucking on a lollipop while watching a live broadcast of them through a monitor—and perhaps even commenting on Shiori's reaction right now?

What could possibly have happened to her?

Forget injuries; probably not even a single hair had been disturbed.

"Relax, Shido." Qian Huanyue held back the truth that nearly slipped out and gently patted her shoulder.

"Calm down, Shido. That restaurant wasn't in the center of the spacequake, and I remember the warning alarms had been going for long enough. With how clever your sister is, she must have evacuated safely already." She paused, then added,

"Why don't you try calling her now? Maybe she's waiting for you somewhere safe."

Those words woke Shiori from her panic. She hurriedly pulled out her phone, her fingers trembling slightly as she pressed the speed-dial button. After a brief ring, the call connected—

"Hello~? Big brother?"

Kotori's distinctive sweet voice, carrying a hint of coquettishness, came through the receiver. The background was unusually quiet, completely devoid of the noise of a shelter.

"Kotori! Are you okay?! Where are you now?" Shiori demanded anxiously, panic still lingering in her voice.

"I'm fine. When the alarm went off, the restaurant manager responsibly organized everyone to go to the underground shelter." Kotori sounded as relaxed as if she were discussing the day's weather. Oddly, there was no noise in the background; it was even exceptionally quiet. But Shiori was too worried about her sister to notice.

"I was already heading back to school earlier. I'm home now. What about you, big brother? Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine..." Shiori instinctively glanced at Qian Huanyue beside her. The latter was looking up at the night sky as though none of this concerned her. "I'll be home soon too."

"Okay~" Kotori breathed a sigh of relief, hung up, and continued observing her sister and the Spirit aboard the Fraxinus.

After ending the call, Shiori let out a long breath. The weight in her heart finally settled. She turned to Qian Huanyue with an apologetic smile. "Thank you for reminding me. She really is okay..."

"Mhm." Qian Huanyue raised her chin slightly and answered with feigned composure.

"It's really great that Huanyue was here." Shiori spoke sincerely, her eyes full of gratitude.

"Mhm!" This time, the reply rose noticeably in pitch, carrying undisguised delight.

"Huanyue is so dependable!"

"Mm..." Qian Huanyue puffed out her cheeks like a pufferfish, her face growing hot. It was obvious she could not handle this.

Were you some kind of compliment machine?

Qian Huanyue felt that if this continued, she might embarrass herself, so she decisively used Seraph of Thousand Blades to cut open space.

"Hmph, all right, it's getting late." As Qian Huanyue spoke, she flicked a finger, and ripples spread through the air once again. The phantom of Seraph of Thousand Blades flashed through her palm, precisely cutting open a spatial rift leading to a familiar street.

Before Shiori could react, Qian Huanyue had already gently held her shoulder and taken her a step forward—

"Wait, Huanyue, you..."

Before she could finish, Shiori's vision blurred, and a familiar house number suddenly appeared before her. She was already standing at her front door!

"See you next time, Shido."

Qian Huanyue stood on the other side of the spatial rift and gave her a mischievous wink. Her silver hair glowed softly beneath the moonlight, and her pure white dress swayed gently in the wind.

With that lighthearted farewell, the spatial rift silently closed behind her without leaving even the slightest trace.

It was as though it had never existed.

Shiori was left standing alone before her home, still holding her phone, while Qian Huanyue's smiling voice seemed to echo in her ears.

She stared blankly at the empty street for a while, then finally could not help letting out a gentle laugh.

"Honestly..."

—Shiori had not realized that from this day onward, her peaceful everyday life had come to a complete end.

Ratatoskr's massive aerial battleship would appear above Shiori's home.

The sealing plan had officially begun.

The plan to win over the Spirit "Qian Huanyue" would begin immediately.

Under Kotori's Commander Mode, Shiori Itsuka would begin learning how to date Spirits, how to make Spirits blush, and how to steal a Spirit's power with a kiss—

The things Kotori called "necessary training" would leave her flustered and utterly overwhelmed in the days to come.

But at that moment, Shiori merely gently pushed open the front door and called toward the warm lights, "I'm home."

Kotori's familiar reply came from inside, and the scent of tropical fruit drifted through the air. Everything was as peaceful as usual.

—At least, none of it had anything to do with Shiori Itsuka, who only wanted to get some proper rest today.

On a familiar bench, Qian Huanyue drank a beverage from the vending machine as usual, while the shadow beneath her feet slowly spread.

"My, my. Look who I found?" A voice with a distinctive lilt came from within the shadow.

"Mhm." Qian Huanyue looked up.

The hem of a bright crimson Spirit garment emerged from the shadows first, followed by the signature twin tails—one, two, and more and more Kurumis who looked somewhat unusual rose from the shadows.

Picking up the empty can in her hand, Qian Huanyue effortlessly crushed it into a ball between two fingers. Closing one eye, she smiled and hummed lightly at Kurumi.

"I might not be able to treat you again like last time, my dear..."

She deliberately paused, watching their expressions before slowly speaking the final words:

"...good friends."