Editing Unlimited Fafnir:Volume 6 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 5===

"Of course I'm happy that the plan went smoothly... But what on earth did you do to Ren-san? I feel that you have grown a bit too close."

After we got off the Ferris wheel and went to meet everyone, along the way to the park exit, Lisa looked at us in surprise.

Ren was gripping my right hand tightly, smiling with delight on her face.

The sun was about to disappear in the west. The western sky was red. Looking east, I could see the first star shining in the night sky.

"I'm curious too. Can I ask the reason, Ren?"

Looking quite curious, Ariella asked Ren.

Feeling gazes from Mitsuki, Iris, Firill, Tia and everyone else, Ren lowered her head shyly.

"......Onii-chan."

Ren called to me quietly and pulled my hand.

Hearing her say that, the girls broke into a commotion.

"Ah, I get it now. You often said you wanted an older brother, Ren, so your dream has come true now, right?"

Ariella seemed to understand completely from hearing one sentence from Ren. Smiling, she rubbed Ren's head.

"...Mm."

Ren looked down and nodded mildly in confirmation.

"W-Wait, so that means Nii-san is willing to become Ren-san's 'Onii-chan'?"

Greatly shaken, Mitsuki asked immediately.

"Well, something like that."

I answered with embarrassed feelings. Mitsuki instantly looked offended.

"What do you mean, something like that...? Let me tell you, Nii-san, brother-sister relationships do not come about so lightly—"

"Eh? Don't tell me you're jealous, Mitsuki?"

Mid-sentence, Firill interrupted.

"What... I-I am most certainly not jealous!"

"Really? Then what's the problem? Even though she's calling him Onii-chan, it's just an intimate way of addressing someone slightly older."

"I know that, but..."

Mitsuki reluctantly stopped complaining but still looked at me with eyes of unease.

I had no blood relation to Mitsuki. As siblings in name only, she could not remain complacent. Perhaps she felt anxious as though her position was being stolen.

"Don't worry, Mitsuki, I won't stop being your brother."

"Ah... S-Sure."

I comforted her but the gloom on Mitsuki's face did not dissipate completely despite her smile.

Did I word it wrong? Sure enough, with my lost memories, I was unable to guess Mitsuki's feelings.

"Tia won't be jealous! Because Tia wants Yuu to be Tia's husband, not big brother, but... Tia wants to hold hands too."

Tia stared at my hand that Ren was holding. Because my left arm was in a cast, I could not hold hands with two people at the same time.

"Tia-chan, don't disturb them right now. It's not easy for Mononobe and Ren-chan to become closer."

Iris advised Tia with a wry smile.

"That's true, but... Aren't you jealous, Iris?"

"Eh? I-I'm also..."

Momentarily at a loss for words, Iris looked at me with a complicated expression. Her reaction made my heart rate accelerate.

"See, Iris is like Tia, so according to the order—"

Tia made an "I knew it" look and was just about to make some sort of suggestion when she stopped mid-sentence.

"Eh?"

It really happened in an instant.

A figure dashed over, picked up Tia from behind and ran away just like that.

Since it was too suddenly, no one could instantly grasp what had happened, including me. Even so, I was still the first to come to my senses. Letting go of Ren's hand, I instantly gave chase.

"Hold it right there!!"

What the heck—Who on earth...?

Despite the questions filling my mind, I did not have the luxury to ponder. In any case, I had to rescue Tia.

"L-Let Tia go!"

Skillfully carrying the struggling Tia while escaping was a slender young man. His blond ponytail fluttered behind him in the wind.

Could... that be John?

Seeing a familiar looking back, I realized the perpetrator's identity.

"John!"

As soon as I called his name, he instantly looked back. It really was John.

However, John did not slow down. Thus he ran into one of the nearby buildings.

This was an attraction named the "Castle of Mirrors." As suggested by its name, the castle's interior design consisted of mirrors covering the whole place. Entry seemed to be unrestricted with no staff at the entrance.

It was already close to nightfall. Since people were gathered at attractions designed for admiring the scenery, the Castle of Mirrors was empty without anyone in sight.

"Nii-san!"

"Mononobe! Where's Tia-chan!?"

I stopped. Mitsuki, Iris and the others caught up.

"—Inside here. It's John who abducted Tia, which means that Kili might be here too, because yesterday, she mentioned about talking next time... I think she probably wants to talk to me here."

"Doing things coercively as usual... If she wants to talk, why can't she do it openly?"

Lisa commented in frustration.

"Mononobe-kun, we'd better chase quickly."

Although Firill urged me, I shook my head after thinking briefly.

"No, Firill, you and the others should guard the entrance and the surroundings. I'll go inside by myself. In case a fight against Kili breaks out, I'm the only one who can oppose her."

Saying that, I broke into a run without waiting for their response.

"Onii-chan—"

"Hold on, Mononobe-kun!"

I heard Ren and Ariella's voices behind me but did not look back.

Entering the Castle of Mirrors through the entrance that was styled like a gate, I suddenly found myself about to collide with my mirror image.

"...!"

I reflexively guarded myself then exhaled.

The interior was just as expected, a corridor covered with mirrors. Oppositely facing mirrors produced countless virtual images.

As a result, it was impossible to judge the length and width of this corridor accurately. Running recklessly would probably collide into a wall.

Left without a choice, I could only advance by walking briskly.

"Tia! Where are you? John! Answer me!"

I called out but did not get any response.

But after turning for who knew how many times, I saw John.

In the passage there, even the floor and ceiling was covered with mirrors in addition to the walls.

In that space where the feeling of up and down would become unstable, John was standing there quietly.

"—Thank goodness, I'm so glad that you came alone, Captain. If others came along, I'd have to stall you all here."

"John... Why are you doing this? Where's Tia?"

I slowed my pace and entered a combat stance while asking him. I could not see Tia anywhere within my field of vision.

"She is talking inside with Kili."

"Then I'm going over."

I planned to advance but John raised a hand to stop me.

"Sorry, please wait a while longer. Kili seems to have something important to tell her."

"...John, when did you become Kili's underling?"

I glared at John without hiding my irritation.

"I told you yesterday, I didn't become Kili's friend. I'm only joining forces with her due to certain reasons."

"Reasons?"

I asked her with my gaze.

"Well... I can't tell you. While key facts remain unknown... Even if I told you incomplete information, it would do nothing but cause you trouble, Captain."

Seeing John's apologetic look when replying to me, I exhaled.

"I understand you have your reasons for doing this, but I can't accept it unless you explain to me. Sorry, I'm heading over because I'm worried about Tia."

I took a step forward and John instantly turned to enter a stance.

"—My apologies, Captain, then I'll have to delay you for a while."

"If you want to fight, I won't show any mercy."

Anti-personnel weapon—AT Nergal.

I generated dark matter in my right hand, transmuting into a projectile-based electroshock gun. My palm instantly felt the gun's familiar weight.

"Be my guest. Your left arm seems unusable right now, so I have a chance in this environment."

As soon as he said that, John instantly kicked the ground and closed in on his own initiative.

I was momentarily confused by this unexpected move. John was a sniper. Although he had gone through martial arts training, it was much cruder compared to what other Sleipnir members and I went through. In addition, John was not carrying any weapons right now.

Starting a close quarters fight against me while unarmed would be a foolish act of overconfidence.

While approaching me, John swung an acute punch at me.

With minimum motion, I dodged while moving forward, executing a sweeping kick the instant I passed by him.

However, I did not feel the kick connect.

—Hmm?

Jumping to dodge my sweep, John turned in the air to perform a spinning kick.

Unable to use my left arm, I could not block this attack coming from the left. Without a choice, I could only duck to evade. John's leg brushed past the back of my head.

Maintaining this posture, I aimed Nergal's muzzle at John.

His movements were more nimble than I predicted. Although I was a little surprised, this was the end. Since he was in midair, there was no way he could dodge my attack.

But just as I was about to pull the trigger, my instincts sounded the alarm.

John's extended arm was aimed at me. A metallic glint could be seen inside his clenched fist—

"!?"

I made a split-second decision and swung Nergal.

Clang—a hard sound rang out and I felt a strong impact transmitted through Nergal.

A coin flew up in the air, spinning as it fell.

"Flicked huh—"

Most likely, he was holding the coin in his hand from the start, then he flicked the coin fiercely with his finger.

Although no match for handguns, the firepower of flicked projectiles at close range must not be underestimated. A single clean hit on the center of the forehead could result in unconsciousness.

Seizing the chance when I switched to defense, John instantly launched flicked projectiles consecutively with both hands as soon as he landed.

However, flicked projectiles were a type of ambush technique. There was nothing to fear once they were known in advance.

Precipitating my ego, I slightly awakened the "Fafnir" dormant in the bottom of my subconscious.

My sharpened senses captured John's killing intent and transmitted the trajectories of his flicked projectiles to me. Evading all projectiles simply through dodging, I aimed my gun at John.

"It's over."

I pulled the trigger. A single hit from this projectile-based electroshock gun would instantly render the target unconscious.

However, John evaded my attack as though he had predicted my bullet trajectory.

"What..."

Seeing me surprised, John showed a happy smile on the corner of his lips.

"Indeed, that shot would have ended things if I were still the one you knew."

"I can't believe you dodged that... You've become stronger."

I praised him and John scratched his face uncomfortably.

"No... It's not because I got stronger, but thanks to this location."

He pointed at the corridor covered with mirrors and continued:

"I was scouted for my ''eyes'' that are superior to others, thus becoming a member of Sleipnir. In this space filled with mirrors, Captain, I can observe your movements from all directions. Simply through vision, I can gather several times more information than usual, which improves the accuracy of predictions."

"So that's why my attacks all missed."

Hearing John's explanation, I sighed.

"Even you will take a fair amount of effort to defeat me currently. But if you intend to kill me—Things might be different."

John gazed at my eyes in a probing manner and spoke.

"......"

I faced off against John, thinking what to do. But before I reached that conclusion, I heard a cellphone ringtone in the surroundings.

"—This is a call from Kili. Looks like there's no need to stall longer."

John took out his cellphone from a pocket and spoke with relief.

I breathed a sigh of relief too.

"Then can I go over?"

"Yes. But rather, I will lead the way because it's a maze inside."

John released his combat stance completely and walked deeper into the corridor.

The originally tense atmosphere eased up. I placed Nergal into an inside pocket of my uniform.

In the end, I had simply increased my fatigue for nothing. I sighed while following John.

The castle's mirror-filled interior was truly full of complicated intersecting paths. Even if I had defeated John, it would have been impossible to find Tia quickly. Kili must have chosen the Castle of Mirrors with this in consideration.

Tia and Kili were in a great hall that seemed to be in the center of the maze.

"Ah—Yuu!"

Seeing me, Tia ran over in joy.

Tia pounced at my chest. I caught her and looked at Kili standing in the center of the hall.

"Kili... What is your goal in doing this?"

"Because I needed to talk to Tia in private without being disturbed by anyone, that's why I invited her to this Castle of Mirrors. This happens to be a great place to help her scrutinize her own existence anew."

Kili answered nonchalantly without any conscience at all.

I gently asked Tia, who was clinging to my waist.

"Tia, did she do anything to you?"

"...Don't worry, we were just talking."

Tia looked up and answered. However, her voice lacked vitality. I felt concerned by Kili's mention of "existence."

"What did you talk about?"

"Umm..."

Tia stammered in response to my question. I looked at Kili again to seek an explanation.

"—Unfortunately, the explanation cannot come from my lips. Including whether to tell you or not, everything will be decided by Tia on her own, so I will talk to you about something else."

Kili narrowed her eyes and responded in monotone.

"Something else?"

"That's right. Since your group has come to Japan to defeat Yggdrasil, there's much I want to tell you. That's why I came here specially."

Kili shrugged then continued in a sharper tone of voice.

"Your side plans to destroy Yggdrasil's mind, right? I heard the gist from Tia just now."

"Y-Yeah..."

Since Tia already told her, it was pointless for me to hide it, so I nodded in admission.

"I will offer you honest advice. As things currently stand, your plan will still fail no matter how hard your side tries."

"What—Why would you know...?"

"I know. Because even earlier than you guys, starting long ago, I've been searching for a way to defeat Yggdrasil."

Kili interrupted me and replied.

"Huh...?"

"Yggdrasil can interfere with dark matter. You should know this since you fought it at Midgard, right? In other words, Yggdrasil is the natural predator of 'Black' Vritra—Mother."

Kili had confessed to me in the past that she was a being created from Vritra's dark matter. Hence, what she said just now was meant literally.

To Tia and John who did not know the truth, it probably sounded like Vritra was something like a mother for giving Ds the power to generate dark matter, but Kili was actually Vritra's daughter in a real sense.

"Twenty-five years ago, Mother went missing ''in order to escape from Yggdrasil''. This is the truth of Vritra's disappearance."

"What... Are you for real?"

I could not believe that she had told me the answer to this mystery, still debated all over the world, so easily. I asked her hoarsely.

"Yes, I'm not going to lie. Honestly, I originally wanted to pique your interest with this fact, to serve as a bargaining chip... But if I keep my cards hidden, you won't be able to understand the current situation correctly, so today, that's why I'm telling you many other things you want to know."

"The things I want to know..."

There were too many. I did not know which of them she was referring to.

"You are very curious about my relationship to Hekatonkheir, right?"

"Y-Yeah... Because you also addressed Hekatonkheir as mother, Kili."

"I'll answer this question of yours. In the past, while hiding from Yggdrasil, Mother also controlled an avatar created from dark matter to take action, and that avatar is precisely 'Blue' Hekatonkheir. Although half of it is materialized, it's probably quite similar in nature to the fictional armaments of you Ds."

"Hekatonkheir is Vritra's avatar... fictional armament."

I muttered blankly, but my mind agreed with it partially.

The reason why Kili had addressed Hekatonkheir as mother in the past and why Hekatonkheir had exhibited astounding regenerative powers—If it was Vritra's avatar made from dark matter, all these questions were easily explained.

"Yes, by the way, I served as something like a relay to link Mother to Hekatonkheir. Through the dragon mark on my body that's linked to Mother, Hekatonkheir could materialize on the spot or replenish its dark matter."

"Relay...? Don't tell me that when Hekatonkheir appeared at Midgard, it was also—"

That time, Hekatonkheir had appeared in Midgard without any warning at all. Even the alarm was sounded after Hekatonkheir showed up. I finally understood why.

"Just as you think, Hekatonkheir appeared through me. But Mother used biogenic transmutation to change my dragon mark in order to make me into Hraesvelgr's mate, so I can no longer serve as a relay."

And the chosen one ended up not being me, how silly of Mother—Kili shrugged.

At the Principality of Erlia, Hraesvelgr chose Firill instead of Kili. Calling herself an "imitation," Kili looked quite heartbroken when she was not chosen... Right now, I could see her "in pain" slightly.

"Because my link to Mother has been severed, altering my dragon mark again is impossible. Thus, I'm free. Prior to that, I've always acted according to Mother's orders. Finding a way to eliminate her natural predator, Yggdrasil, was also one of my assigned missions, so regarding strategies against Yggdrasil, I have an edge held by no other person."

Kili spoke in fierce tone of voice and looked at me solemnly.

"Yuu, listen carefully. First of all, based on the current situation, approaching Yggdrasil is already difficult enough. Something on the level of jamming won't be able to stop Yggdrasil's interference. It will get rapidly analyzed and neutralized. Even if you the plan succeeds in destroying Yggdrasil's mind, a new core consciousness will end up getting built. That's inevitable because the physical body is not destroyed."

Kili eloquently dashed our hopes to pieces.

"Gah... If what you say is true, what should I do—"

Even if someone said it was impossible, in my situation, all I could do was fight. Yggdrasil's power to control was increasing. Once I got controlled, even trying to fight would be impossible.

"There does exist a solution to problems in the plan. But whether you'll be able to obtain that solution—I don't know."

Kili shrugged and remarked coldly. She seemed to glance at Tia for just an instant.

"By this point, are you still trying to act dumb?"

"You've got it wrong. I can only say this at the moment. In any case, please don't insist of fighting despite knowing there is no chance of victory. That's all I want to say."

Kili looked away from me and faced John.

"The job is done, let's retreat."

John seemed unable to hide his shock at what Kili had said, but he pulled himself together and nodded.

"G-Got it. Then Captain—I will take my leave now."

After bowing respectfully, John chased after Kili. They seemed to be moving towards the exit of the Castle of Mirrors.

"—Oh, one more thing."

Just as they were about to exit the hall, Kili stopped and looked back at me.

"What is it?"

I stayed on maximum alert but Kili spoke seriously:

"The lab where you're staying... is a bit unusual. Compared to other facilities, the level of security measures is quite extraordinary. There are many areas locked by administrator access."

"What do you mean...?"

I asked, not really understanding. Kili narrowed her eyes and said:

"In other words, the facility's highest authority, the director, keeps quite a large research area to himself alone. I sense a dangerous presence, so please be careful."

Leaving that warning behind, Kili disappeared with John on the other side of the passage, leaving for real this time.

Areas occupied solely by the lab's director, Miyazawa Kenya.

Indeed, I felt inexplicable uneasiness in my heart. In addition, the many secrets revealed by Kili kept circling in my mind.

Of course, there was no guarantee that everything Kili said was the truth. She might have told lies for the sake of misleading me.

The more I thought, the more questions popped up nonstop. If Hekatonkheir was Vritra's fictional armament, then Vritra's intent was the reason why Hekatonkheir went for a suicide explosion with Yggdrasil at the Germany-Denmark border.

Kili had not mentioned this incident at all. Speaking of which, her reason for infiltrating the lab was still a mystery.

"Yuu...?"

While I was lost in thought, Tia tugged my clothing and called to me.

Oh—

I came to my senses, patted Tia's head and smiled at her.

"—Anyway, let's get back to the girls. They must be worried."

Scrutinizing what Kili had said should wait until I had discussed with everyone. Agonizing over it alone would not help. This was the lesson I had learned from past experience.

"Hmm..."

Tia's reply lacked energy. I sensed that she was also troubling over something.

What exactly did Kili say to her in my absence...? Although I felt extremely curious, it looked like I should not force the issue for now.

I'll try asking her after she calmed down.

"If you're tired, do you want to sit on my shoulders?"

I made this suggestion, hoping to cheer her up slightly, but Tia looked up with a smile.

"No need, Tia is fine! This is better, let's go, Yuu!"

Holding my right hand, Tia started to walk.

Choosing to hold hands instead of sitting on my shoulders, she pulled me forward.

Thus, we walked in the opposite direction from Kili and John, back to the entrance of the Castle of Mirrors.

The mirrors facing one another showed reflections of Tia and me, looking almost like travelers lost in alternate dimensions—

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