"I see..." Akutagawa Shang mused inwardly.
It seemed he had just fallen into the sisters' mental world, and what he had seen must have been their souls.
Akutagawa Shang rubbed his slightly aching, swollen head and struggled to sit up.
But Mai pushed him straight back down, making the back of his head bounce against Maki's lap.
"What are you doing? Ow-!!!"
Akutagawa Shang clutched his head and cried out.
"Don't move around. Just stay still and rest..." Mai's voice carried concern, and she reached out to gently massage his temples with her fingers.
"Exactly..." Maki chimed in, reaching out to hold Akutagawa Shang by the chin.
"Okay... I won't move."
Seeing this, Akutagawa Shang stopped resisting and lay there peacefully, enjoying this rare moment of tranquility.
"By the way, how are you two doing? Did it work...?"
Although Akutagawa Shang could already see the changes in the sisters, he asked anyway.
At his words, Maki and Mai nodded together.
"Mm-hmm... It should have worked. My sister's body got stronger, and my Cursed Energy increased by a whole, whole lot."
At this point, Mai paused, as though hesitating over something.
The next moment, Maki picked up where she had left off.
"How did you do it...? It was clearly about to fail before."
"Oh, that? I made a Binding Vow, turning myself into a new dividing anchor for you two. As long as I'm alive, neither of you will go back to how you were..."
"Then did you ever consider... what would happen if you failed?" Mai asked, stressing every word.
Akutagawa Shang scratched his cheek, his expression suggesting it was no big deal.
"I really didn't think about that. But don't worry... Nobody understands Binding Vows better than I do..."
As his words fell, both Maki and Mai fell