Chapter 439: Alchemy

Did Rinji have full confidence in defeating this unknown entity?

Not at all.

Though he looked unscathed after getting struck by lightning, he had actually taken serious damage.

The burning smell Fujiwara noticed earlier came from some of his organs being carbonized by the extreme heat of the lightning strike.

If the smoke hadn't hidden it, she would've seen something nightmarish.

Behind the smoke, Rinji's entire skin had been incinerated, some of his blood had evaporated, and his charred, cracked skin revealed his white bones underneath.

It was a bolt of lightning that could heat the air to five times the surface temperature of the sun. Even though he diverted the current and blocked the pulse, the heat alone was something no normal person could withstand.

This was the wrath of nature.

"Good thing my healing ability is a bit stronger than most. Otherwise, you'd have had me."

Rinji sneered as he walked toward the torii gate.

In Shinto belief, the torii is the gateway between the human and divine realms. Hina had prayed there to communicate with the sky using the fan "door."

So if he wanted to reach where Hina was, the entrance was likely through the torii.

Rinji stepped down hard, cracking the rooftop floor, and shot forward like a cannonball through the torii.

Whoosh!!

As his body passed through, the scenery changed instantly.

Gone was the skyline of Tokyo. In its place was a sea of clouds—endless, white, and pristine.

There was no rain here, only lightning rolling through the clouds.

He was falling fast through the sky.

The sky above was a deep blue, nearly black. Looking down, he saw the curved blue of the Earth's surface—the boundary between sky and land.

He was so high up, he could see the Earth's curvature. His breath turned to ice crystals in the freezing air.

As he descended, Rinji saw a ribbon-like creature coiling through the sky, resembling a mythical dragon.

It noticed him and lunged forward with its massive maw open.

As it drew closer, Rinji realized—it was a creature made of water, its body composed of countless fish-like forms.

"So I was right."

As the creature tried to devour him, Rinji thrust out his hand and grabbed its watery jaws.

Zzzzzzzz—

Bright blue lightning exploded from the sky.

The instant the creature touched Rinji's hand, it evaporated into a cloud of steam.

Alchemy.

This was Rinji's hidden ability.

Rather than a power, it was more of a technique—anyone with a sharp mind could learn it.

It allowed control over decomposition and reconstruction of matter through cycles and transformation. Rinji first used it in Japan during a blackjack game with the tabletop club.

That strange-ringed finger and the magic-circle-like patterns on his palms—those were the keys to triggering alchemy.

He never thought this technique, once only for daily convenience, would end up used in combat.

The creature's head had vanished. As the rest of its body followed, Rinji touched it again.

More lightning sparked, freezing the rest of the body into ice.

Landing atop the ice block, Rinji looked around as it descended.

There, suspended in the sky, was a floating island.

Covered in grass, surrounded by tiny fish formed from droplets, it was peaceful.

And lying on the grass, eyes closed, was Hina.

"Hina!!"

"...Mmm..."

Hearing her name, Hina slowly opened her eyes.

What she saw was Rinji, standing atop a falling block of ice.

"Rinji!!!"

Seeing she was awake, Rinji didn't hesitate. He leaped from the ice and landed on the floating grass.

"Hina... I came to bring you home, just like I promised."

He stepped in front of her and smiled, offering his hand.

"Yeah."

She smiled and placed her small hand in his.

All around them, the winds surged. The creature that had turned into steam began to reform and rushed toward them.

"Let's go home," Rinji said with a smile. "Whether it's sunny skies or your future, anything you need—I'll bring it to you."

"I believe you."

And with that, Rinji leapt from the floating island, hand in hand with Hina, falling back toward Earth.

They plunged through thick clouds. The darkness grew. The air turned wet and heavy. Their clothes soaked through. The pitch-black clouds moved like living tissue, writhing slowly. Thunder flashed from within, each bolt shaking the air with deafening booms.

If Rinji's guess was right, this path through the torii would return them to the real world safely.

…

The night sky was dark. Rain still poured down.

Feeling the rain on her cheeks, Hina opened her eyes again.

She looked up at the dark sky, the clouds, and the water pouring down from above. She sat up and glanced around.

This was the rooftop of Yoyogi Hall. The torii gate had been smashed to pieces.

"The torii is a gateway between humans and the gods. Destroy it, and you'll never be able to connect with the sky again," Rinji said, walking up behind her with a smile.

"Of course, you're no longer the Sunshine Girl, nor a sacrifice."

"I see... I've finally returned to Earth."

Feeling the solid cement under her, breathing in the moisture-laden air, Hina looked up at the sky.

"I'm back."

"Yes."

"But now that I'm back, the weather..."

"The weather doesn't matter compared to you," Rinji said with a smile. "Didn't I tell you? Whether it's sunshine or you, I'll bring them both back."

With that, Rinji pulled a marker from his pocket.

"Though it's a bit tricky to pull off... I think my old man taught me this before..."

Boom—

A bolt of lightning struck down right in front of Rinji.

The lightning swirling in the clouds grew thicker, seemingly about to strike again.

"Tch, so it's not done yet?"

Rinji's gaze sharpened.

If he got hit by multiple bolts of lightning, it wouldn't end well—especially with Hina standing here.

He quickly refocused, thinking seriously about how to deal with the creature in the sky.

These beings with no physical form and only a conceptual existence were his biggest weakness.

The thunder grew louder. The second bolt seemed imminent.

"Bring it on!"

He braced himself, prepared for a final battle with whatever this so-called "god" was.

But the lightning never came.

Instead, the thunder faded away.

The clouds above started to disperse, as if a hole had been dug in the middle of the sky. The dark mass gradually spread apart.

No more rain—only sunlight shone down on the two of them.

Bathed in the golden light, Rinji stared blankly at the sun in the sky.

"..."

"Rinji… you really did it!"

Hina's face lit up with joy at the sudden clear skies.

"No... it wasn't me," Rinji said, shaking his head.

As if realizing something, he turned to Hina.

"Did you bring your phone?"

"Eh? Yeah, I did."

"What time is it now?"

"Right now… it's 8 p.m.—wait, huh?"

The moment she said it, Hina froze.

She looked up at the sun hanging in the sky and felt the warmth on her skin, her eyes full of confusion.

"Why… is the sun out at night?"

---

In a finely decorated restaurant, a band played elegant music.

Atenbo Yume looked out the window at the clear sky, frowning slightly.

"The weather's getting weirder and weirder. They said the storm would last a week, and now look at it."

Across from her sat a man.

He wore a black trench coat. His jet-black hair was styled with a side part, covering his left eye.

After taking a small bite of foie gras, he set down his utensils and dabbed the corner of his mouth with a napkin.

"Something wrong, Mr. Takamine? Not to your taste?" Atenbo asked with a smile.

"Not at all."

The man pulled a cigarette from his pocket and placed it between his lips. With a snap of his fingers, the cigarette lit itself.

A subtle smile curled at his lips.

"Quite… 'delicious.'"