Chapter 3: Inui Yume

At noontime on the streets of an uninhabited city, two people faced each other under the backdrop of the blue sky. 

One was a girl dressed in white and blue, with sharp twintails reminiscent of antennae.

The purity of her white and blue astral dress matched the impression of a dress suitable for a world marked by sunshine.

On the other side was a male dressed in all black. 

He had black hair, and what was even more dumbfounding was that he was not a spirit, and his outfit was definitely not an astral dress.

He didn't even seem to have an angel with him.

And that was what drew her here. But then again, *gulp*, Inui Yume swallowed her breath.

It was likely due to being on the verge of death multiple times now.

Before, at a single glance, she could read his strength, but now, not so much.

"So, why did you call out to me? Although it looks like it has nothing to do with Doll Master." 

Hearing Yume's words, Tokisaki Ikari couldn't help but let out a smile.

"Yes, yes, that's right. Completely irrelevant to that. There's merely something that I want." 

"What do you want? I don't have anything for you, though."

"There is something. An invitation has arrived for you, has it not?" 

"... Heh, what? So it turned out to be that. You sure are a strange person."

"Then, can you give it to me?"

Ikari asked, neither with a polite expression nor with a commanding tone; he simply asked as though it should be given to him.

In order to break that expression, Yume spat out from her mouth.

"No, if you want it, rely on your own strength──"

BOOM-!

An explosion resounded from behind her, propelling her forward. Yume's eyes widened.

In the blink of an eye, the male, looking no older than her, had made his move.

"Oh, then please allow me to use my strength to bring you down."

Yume didn't intend on listening to this conversation until the very end.

It seemed that the other party was aiming to kill her from the very beginning. 

With killing intent in her eyes, Yume manifested her double-edged sword (Estoc).

"Unsigned Angel, huh? Interesting, however, I don't have much time left…"

"Let's go!"

Ikari's expression changed.

It was an extremely serious yet sinister expression that appeared on the male's face. 

Perhaps due to this unclear and oppressive feeling, Yume let out an imposing scream while charging to attack.

The battle had started.

That being said, even when seen from Empty's perspective, it was clearly a one-sided battle. There was a difference in the speed of flight. There was a difference in the range of attacks.

Despite Inui Yume's attacks flying at a speed faster than the eye could see, the male dressed in black easily avoided them perfectly.

'Incredible.'

Was the existence of a so-called quasi-spirit as powerful as Ikari made it sound?

Empty could only breathlessly watch.

Inui Yume's white and blue astral dress was now stained with blood.

An ugly vermilion, a miserable scarlet red. She was terrified.

Killing each other was what she had expected. 

However, the male in front of her was a difficult enemy far beyond expectations.

"So, if you hand it over to me, this problem will be resolved."

The male in black declared. 

However, passing this over meant a defeat. It was owed to her loathing, extreme loathing of defeat, that allowed her to remain victorious.

"No! Absolutely not! How can I hand it over to someone like you?"

"How bothersome. I want to participate in this game that you also wish to join. The fixed number of participants has already been decided; there is more than a seventy percent chance you'll lose, so why are you being so adamant about this?" 

"Clearly you talk about compromises after that fact; I would have to modestly decline!"

"Then there's no choice. Ms Yume, I will make you submit to me. By force."

Raising his head, saying such words in such a condescending manner made a chill run down her spine.

"You, this──!"

Attacks swung down to their targets from the Estoc sword in her hands.

She understood; she understood that this was reckless. Since, to speak from the very beginning, her attacks have not even grazed the target…

But she wanted to win more by participating in that game, to become stronger.

She could never fall at a place like this. She had used many of her friends as food.

For the sake of her own survival, she had betrayed them. 

So surely, in Yume Inui's eyes, she was the main character of this world. As things stand now, retreat was impossible…!

'──How stupid.'

Why was it impossible to understand without being alone? In a low whisper.

A burst of pain. A hand had gone through her stomach, sizzling due to the heat his hands emitted. 

The male had wrapped his other hand around her back, yet, with such a wound, rather than hurting, it was a feeling of frightening loss. 

Surely, if she looked at a mirror now, an ugly expression of herself would be undoubtedly reflected.

"I am the same as you. No, rather my willpower is much stronger. A desire to be stronger? Is that all? If it is just that, then—"

A complete loss.

At the same time the invitation card was taken away, he still clung to her, embracing her, even with his hands through her stomach.

"—Perhaps the difference between us was that large." He muttered that to her ears.

"What do you mean?"

Singularity. 

Just as she knew about it; rather, they didn't know anything about him to begin with.

An even worse existence than Empty. An even emptier existence than Empty, herself.

Someone whose existential framework didn't belong to this world.

Neither a Spirit nor a Quasi-spirit, he was an existence closer to an Inverse, but rather than an inverse, he was one which could be called a Demon King himself.

"Haha… so, that was it, huh?"

The girl muttered with a self-deprecating smile.

"Don't worry; I've gotten what I'm looking for. When I become Dominion. If you change your mind by then, come to me and serve me. I'll take you in."

Saying that, his hands moved from her back then to her face, wiping the ugly expression off her face before pushing her down to the ground.

'She'll live. But whether she makes it to me in the end will depend on her. Still, my dream, huh.....?'

He had already fulfilled his wish. His being here was simply his punishment for breaking fate.

Ikari saved her, who was supposed to die. He saved those two who were supposed to be torn apart.

Additionally, with him being an existence who was not supposed to exist....

Piling those up eventually led to here. Everything led up to him.

The Inverse Spirit of Fire, Time and Space. 

Fatebreaker and Singularity.

Tokisaki Ikari.

One person fell while one remained.

What remained was the male wearing black, Tokisaki Ikari, and just as promised, he had returned.

"That, just now, Inui-san, she…" 

"She's not dead."

Ikari nonchalantly replied, landing on the ground.

However, if Empty didn't see it wrong, wasn't she stabbed by this Spirit in front of her?

There was not too much sense of reality here. A few seconds ago, those two were making quite the ruckus, yet now… everything has gone silent.

"Are you scared?"

Seeing her expression, Ikari asked, which made Empty slowly nod; after all, it was certainly quite terrifying.

Being stabbed by a hand straight to the stomach.

However, Empty remained miraculously calm. The male in front of her was not someone to be afraid of.

No, it was as if someone had whispered that she shouldn't be afraid of him.

"But. I will be quite troubled if I leave you now! Although I am sorry, but please let me accompany you for a while!"

This time it was Ikari's turn to look bewildered. His eyes repeatedly blinked swiftly as he stared at Empty. Then, Ikari broke the silence.

"Ha... I understand," Ikari said with a long sigh but then raised three fingers towards her. "However, there are three things you should adhere to."

Hearing that, Empty gulped to attention.

"First, don't annoy me. Second, don't ask personal questions. Third, do as I ask."

Empty, who heard those three rules, made quite a funny expression as her head went to places.

"Don't tell me; you'll ask for that and that, too!?"

Ikari could quite vividly understand what the girl in front of him was thinking; however, he burned down her imaginations once more.

"Be serious. Besides, I already have two people I've sworn myself to. I'm not interested in you."

Ikari said that.

Empty blinked hearing those words, her expression initially changing from shock to now… curiosity.

Someone like him had sworn himself to two people. Was it related to the other world…?

"Hn… Don't ask."

As she was about to open her mouth, Ikari said that, making her remember the three rules he'd talked about.

So, he wasn't talking about "that".

Realising that, she nodded as crimson slowly rose to her face in realisation as she flusteredly lowered her head towards Ikari.

"T–thank you, I am in your care!"

However, as she finished that, "Well then, let's go."

"Eh?"

Go where?

As Empty thought that, before she could fully grasp the situation, Ikari pulled her into a princess carry.

It was so fast that by the time she realized she was in his arms, she wanted to struggle.

However, she felt that if she did so, Ikari would abandon her afterward.

Besides, with such strong reassurance, lying against his chest oddly didn't feel bad at all.

"Look over there. That's my destination."

Ikari suddenly spoke.

Looking over where the male motioned to, the girl turned her eyes to the sky. In the middle of the town, there was a strange building among all of the modern-style structures lined up.

It was like a spiral, like a pyramid; with those geometric characteristics, it was quite the bizarre building.

"That place?"

"Yeah. My destination is that school building." 

"...School building?"

"Yes, it's a school building. Since that is a school." 

"School?! Are you serious?"

"..."

Ikari didn't reply again. He had already humored her twice.

Realizing this, Empty didn't say a word anymore, and unable to make sense of the circumstances, she sighed.

"So that is to say, this is the reason. We're going to school. School life is great. Nothing to think about, just learning; it feels good!"

'Learning? 'Not quite, my dear Empty.'

Ikari distorted his smile into a bold grin. Despite her face having such an ominous smile, the girl couldn't afford to care about it now.

Then again, even an ominous smile was completely fine, since there was nothing crueler than the feelings of loneliness felt at that time.