Chapter 158: The Human Who Toyed With the World

Having neutralized the most immediate threat—Vento—Shiren turned her attention to the next problem: gathering intelligence on Aleister Crowley. Somehow, he had captured Reicia and, for reasons still unclear, orchestrated an enemy assault that brought down his own stronghold.

Even so, Aleister remained a final-boss-level opponent, rotten or not. Approaching him recklessly was a shortcut to death. Shiren needed someone sharp enough to track Aleister’s movements and strong enough to survive the attempt. The obvious candidate was Kakine Teitoku.

Of course, Kakine was not the type to offer wholehearted cooperation out of gratitude, even if he owed Shiren favors from the incident with Yuzuriha. But since he already intended to exploit the city’s chaos to meddle in Aleister’s affairs and demand direct negotiations, he saw an opportunity to settle his debt at the same time. Their arrangement was simple: Kakine would investigate Aleister, and if he uncovered anything unusual, he would relay it to Shiren.

That was why Kakine had so quickly backed down in the dispute over Reicia’s mediation. He knew the fight wasn’t in his favor, but more importantly, it gave him the perfect chance to fulfill his contract with Shiren. He had simply seized the opportunity. In fact, even that earlier clash had been little more than staged hostility. If he suddenly acted friendly, Aleister would grow suspicious—so Kakine had played the role of enemy.

…Though he didn’t realize it himself, the old Kakine Teitoku would never have cast aside his pride like this, even to repay a debt—least of all toward a sworn enemy. Perhaps his battles with that spiky-haired boy had left him with some subtle shift of heart.

"Anyway, I don’t have time, so I’ll keep this short."

Kakine pressed forward, fully aware of the ticking clock.

"First off, it’s true—the Windowless Building has fallen. The attackers were three members of God’s Right Seat."

"W–wait, wait, wait…!"

"What? I said I don’t have time."

He shot her a mildly exasperated look, though he couldn’t blame her. Three members of God’s Right Seat. When even two had seemed questionable, the sudden appearance of three was enough to make anyone cry out in disbelief.

"Who… who exactly came!?"

"Hell if I know. They called themselves Front, Rear, Left—something like that. I couldn’t figure out the code. But according to that bastard Aleister, one of them has already infiltrated the School Garden. Wouldn’t surprise me if some of your allies have gotten caught up in it."

"What…!"

Kakine already knew from Shiren that Aleister was behind her and Reicia’s forced separation. Which was why, the moment the two were split, Kakine had used his Dark Matter–based high-speed movement to rush ahead and meet Shiren first. That was why he arrived alone, leaving Aleister behind—explaining the odd situation.

"And this is the most important piece of information."

Revealing this would put Aleister on guard against him, potentially sabotaging his own efforts to secure direct negotiations. But after seeing Aleister Crowley up close, Kakine judged the far greater risk to be allowing that "human" to take Near-Death Promise, the divine covenant, into his hands. This was not sentiment—it was calculation.

"Right now, that bastard Aleister is on his way here. For the moment, he’s aligned against God’s Right Seat, but who knows how far you can trust him. I’d say you’re better off hiding. Quickly."

"Well, well. You’ve taken quite the liberty, Dark Matter."

The voice came suddenly from directly behind Kakine.

In that instant, even Shiren—naïve though she often was—felt it: a suffocating pressure that clung to the air. The name for that sensation was… murderous intent.

She started to raise her right hand, but Kakine moved first. Wings flared from his back as he shielded her, one blade of light whipping toward the source of the voice—

"Did you forget? I told you before: no matter how many tens of thousands of rules you impose, the starting point—the ‘one’—is in my hands."

THOOOOM!

Kakine Teitoku’s body was hurled skyward, spinning like a dead leaf before crashing several meters away without so much as a bounce.

Standing beyond his tumbling form was a figure with silver hair so long it brushed the floor, swaying faintly in the breeze. Dressed in surgical robes, that "human" was none other than the Chairman.

Aleister Crowley.

"A–Aleister…!"

"A pleasure to finally meet you, Shiren Blackguard. Or should I say… Near-Death Promise, the divine covenant."

"…!!"

With a dull thud, Kakine landed between them. From the way he fell, it wasn’t fatal. Shiren felt a flicker of relief before her focus snapped back to the man who had felled him with a single blow. That fact alone doubled her caution—one wrong move here and she would die.

"My apologies. I fear I startled you with that rough display. But I was just betrayed by him moments ago. I thought he might try to harm you as well, so I acted preemptively. Rest assured, he’s not mortally injured."

"……He was my ally."

"And what proof do you have of that? Dark Matter is one of this city’s ‘darknesses.’ You’ve heard as much yourself, haven’t you? As I suspected, your sense of caution is still lacking."

"Even so!! I believe I know what matters to him. I believe we can still join hands! This kind of one-sided—!"

Her right hand rose as Shiren remembered her earlier encounter. With the "witch."

Final Chapter: I Don’t Know Anything About Predetermined Harmony  -  Theory_"was"_Broken.
Chapter 132: The Human Who Toyed With the World  -  Extremely_Bad_Fucking_Bastard.

"Hey, Shiren—between Imagine Breaker, World Rejecter, and the strange destiny surrounding their bearers, which do you think came first?"

The question came from inside a cracked mirror.

The "witch" leaned her elbow against a spreading fracture in the glass and asked casually.

"Huh…? Well, Kamijou-san’s right hand cancels supernatural powers, so wouldn’t it cancel out good fortune too? I’d say the right hand came first…"

Shiren swallowed her doubts. Why was the witch suddenly throwing out a theory-nerd question like that? Still, she answered honestly. Even in the "true history," Index had once hinted at something similar. But the witch only sighed in mild exasperation.

"No good. You need to doubt things more. Even if the ‘true history’ contains a testimony, that doesn’t make the witness correct. Think back—was the distortion of fate surrounding Kamisato Kakeru ever truly explained? Didn’t he point out that other factors influenced his right hand before he left?"

"……"

Hearing it aloud, Shiren realized it was true.

Her memories were hazy, but while Imagine Breaker’s curse of misfortune was one thing, the abnormal twists surrounding World Rejecter were another entirely. Explaining them with her current knowledge would be… difficult. This suggested it wasn’t just an ability’s effect at work.

"The answer is inseparable. It’s like the chicken and the egg. The ‘ability of the right hand’ and the ‘distortions of history’ exist independently, but their roots are the same. You can’t say which came first. You could argue that history’s distortions create the right hand’s power—or that the right hand’s power creates history’s distortions."

It was a circular argument, yet Shiren found it convincing. The real mystery was why the witch had suddenly launched into this topic at all.

"But you know," the witch added, "chickens lay eggs, and eggs grow into chickens."

She pointed from inside the mirror directly at Shiren.

"Tell me—doesn’t Near-Death Promise, your divine contract, feel oddly similar to Kamijou’s misfortune?"

A single decisive remark.

"Wh—"

"If the underlying cause is already there, it just needs to be bound together. Gather it up and—oh, what a surprise."

Snap.

The witch flicked her fingers.

There was no dramatic transformation.

Only a strange, undeniable sensation.

It was as if Shiren’s right hand had just gained a new ability.

"The name of that magical right hand is Result Twister. It’s an ability a different version of you once reached."

In other words—just like the witch herself, she had drawn out one of Shiren’s latent possibilities and made it manifest, if only temporarily. With Jagged Edge sealed, this was a blessing. But if these "distortions" were surfacing, it also signaled she was approaching a bad ending, making it hard to fully celebrate.

The witch gazed at Shiren’s right hand with fondness and added:

"Congratulations. Carrying a right hand with supernatural power—doesn’t that make you sound just like a protagonist? Pretty cool, huh ☆"

At that moment, the "Witch" said:

"The anomaly in your right hand clearly reflects the nature of the Divine Contract—Near-Death Promise, which smooths over distortions in history."

Raising her right hand, Shiren fixed her gaze on the "human" before her, refusing to lower her guard.

Aleister, in contrast, relaxed his posture and faced her without any real hostility.

"Good grief… This was my mistake. I seem to have the bad habit of measuring connections with others solely by assuming malice. I apologize for attacking the prime material, Dark Matter. But can you understand that the strike I launched earlier was also meant as a counterattack?"

As he spoke, Aleister’s gaze shifted toward Kakine.

"I know my own actions have caused suspicion… Very well. Let’s do this. I will heal him, with magic. Once he wakes, we can have a proper discussion about what just happened. With you here, Dark Matter should be somewhat disarmed of its venom, after all."

Before Shiren could react, a silver staff appeared in his hand. Shaped like a blossoming flower, it hovered with its tip aimed at Kakine. Watching him, Shiren recalled the Witch’s words from the mirror:

"Just as your nature pulls distortions into itself and smooths them over, the Outlandish Trick—Result Twister—uses your right hand’s interference to flatten distortions."

Snapping her fingers, the Witch continued:

"The trigger is sound. Within the range a sound from your right hand reaches, any malicious interference will be carried away by the tide of history and leveled out. If you want to phrase it like, ‘It cancels out powers touched by your right hand,’ or ‘It exiles overlapping wishes that coincide with your right hand’s shadow into another world,’ then… maybe it’s better to say: ‘It makes malicious interference exposed to your right hand’s sound fail.’"

Recalling those words, Shiren closed her eyes for a moment, then refocused on the human before her.

"…No. I should be the one to apologize. It’s true he is my ally, but what you said isn’t wrong either. After all, you’re traveling together with Reicia-chan, aren’t you?"

"I’m glad you understand. Why she was separated from your body remains a mystery, but…"

"However, as for Reicia-chan’s departure this time—we already know that you’re the culprit."

"……"

Aleister fell silent.

"Who told you that? I only ever spoke of the truth behind her astral projection—Astral Flight—to Jagged Edge, the black-and-white saw blade."

"Oh, I have access to channels you know nothing about. I’m connected to the magic side too, you see. More importantly, would you hurry and heal Kakine-san? Do that, and I’ll let this matter slide."

Shiren casually brushed her hair back. Aleister shrugged awkwardly, then approached Kakine and crouched beside him.

"This causality… twists."

Sparks shaped like numbers scattered at Aleister’s fingertips—

Snap!

Shiren flicked her fingers.

And instantly—

"Guh—ghh!?"

Aleister clutched his mouth and collapsed.

"…Ah. So it was just as I thought."

Watching him, Shiren whispered, her tone heavy with realization.

The Outlandish Trick—Result Twister—was a power that forced malicious interference to fail.

That meant any interference that had been stopped must have been tainted with malice.

Whether it had been a spell meant to kill Kakine, a scheme to turn him into a puppet, or a sneak attack disguised as healing—Aleister had acted with malice even while speaking kindly to her face.

Anger bubbled inside her.

This wretch.

Not only had he taken Reicia away, he had attacked Kakine, who had chosen to cooperate, and tried to deceive her with cowardly lies.

All of it—for the sake of exploiting the Divine Contract—Near-Death Promise—that resided in her body.

"This right hand forces any interference tainted with malice to fail. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

And yet—

Shiren still called out to Aleister.

He was vile, despicable even—but there were hints of reasons behind his actions, some line he could not compromise. Shiren believed he could not truly be a one-dimensional villain.

If the situation turned against him, and she showed willingness to talk, maybe he would change. That was her hope—but then—

Aleister swung the silver staff.

"This causality… twists!!"

Shiren’s right hand reacted in time, only because a part of her heart never let go of one thought: “Aleister isn’t going to be that soft, is he?”

The invisible shock Aleister released veered off course, grazing her cheek instead of striking. As an attack, it had failed.

—But unlike before, Aleister himself had taken no damage.

(…So that’s how it works. If I make the spell itself "fail" right at the start, it counts as the magic failing, and he takes backlash. But if I force it to "fail" after the attack has formed, only the attack fails—no damage…!)

As expected, just like Imagine Breaker or World Rejecter, it wasn’t truly invincible.

Rather, in exchange for clear strength, it carried a decisive weakness. A peak-performing ability, finicky and demanding to use.

"Tch…!"

From the perspective of anyone opposing it, though, it was a nightmare. Aleister clicked his tongue in irritation. Seeing that, Shiren decided this was the moment to press the advantage.

Aleister was, without doubt, a despicable bastard. Even now, he had attempted a cheap shot at the very moment she showed willingness to talk. There was no way he could excuse himself.

But for that very reason, he was capable of cold, calculated self-interest. If she pressed him further with words, perhaps he would weigh the benefits of cooperation over the costs of hostility.

Shiren’s goal wasn’t only to reunite with Reicia; she needed to avert the looming bad ending. She couldn’t afford to waste energy creating more enemies.

"Did you really think that by tearing Reicia-chan away from me, and by disabling Jagged Edge, I would become nothing more than a helpless little girl? That I noticed nothing? Is that truly what you believed?"

Suppressing the anger swelling inside her, Shiren waited for Aleister’s reply.

But, in forcing herself to remain calm, she failed to notice his attention flicker for an instant—toward a shadow behind her.

No—she failed to notice the girl standing there.

And in that moment, she forgot just how thoroughly this "human" had toyed with the world until now.

"…Wait, Shiren. You’ve misunderstood something. I wasn’t activating that spell to harm you."

Even now, excuses.

Shiren knew Aleister wasn’t the type to beg for his life. But she couldn’t fathom his intent.

(…Stalling for time? Planning another sneak attack? Fine. Then I’ll strip away any ambiguity in this situation.)

"So, the enemy of my enemy is supposed to be my friend? The truth is, you’ve already failed here. There’s no logic left that would make me trust you. In the end, aren’t you just planning to use me—or worse, the things I treasure—to resolve this crisis? You can’t rely on Last Order anymore, can you?"

In the past, he had used the Imaginary Number District to apply magical pressure. But with the Misaka Network now secure, that tactic was no longer viable.

By deliberately pointing out his vulnerabilities, Shiren was cutting off his escape routes. In such a disadvantageous situation, wouldn’t conciliation be more profitable than confrontation? That was the thought she wanted him to weigh.

"…If you would just, now—"

"… …No excuses left…!"

Before she could finish, Aleister summoned the silver staff into his right hand and swung it.

Sparks scattered, numbers swirling through the air—

"This causality… twists!"

Snap.

Shiren flicked her fingers as though performing routine work. The sparks blurred, smeared, and vanished.

Aleister reeled back, violently coughing up blood from the backlash of his failed spell.

"Oh my. Seems your ma-gic has failed once again, hasn’t it? No, no—quite the discovery. When I use Outlandish Trick—Result Twister against spellcasting itself, this is the reaction. …So, in the end, functioning as a magician-killer seems common to all ‘right-hand abilities,’ doesn’t it?"

When magic failed, damage followed.

It was truly the nightmare of any magician.

Armed with that truth, Shiren was about to demand surrender—when it happened.

"Shi… Shiren…"

Just one word.

And in that instant, every thought in Shiren’s mind shattered.

There could be no mistake. Even if the pitch had shifted through bone conduction, that voice was engraved into her soul.

Reicia Blackguard.

The lost half of herself.

—But when Shiren saw her expression, she was struck dumb.

Reicia’s face was full of fear and confusion.

Her gaze was fixed… on Shiren.

(Re… Reicia-chan? Why? Why are you looking at me like that? Right now… is there something about me… oh.)

In that moment, Shiren saw herself objectively.

She was baring emotions she had never allowed Reicia to see.

She wielded a power she had never revealed before.

And she had forced the supposed strongest final boss to his knees, speaking venomous words.

What would Reicia think, seeing her partner behave like this?

Wouldn’t it be natural to believe she was possessed… by something evil?

This was it.

This was Aleister’s true aim.

The moment he realized his attacks would always fail, he had stalled—waiting for Reicia. He had even anticipated Shiren’s anger, her high-handed words pushing for surrender. And then he let Reicia see her in that state, making her believe Shiren had "gone wrong."

This "human" had accounted for every irregularity—even his own defeat—to drive a wedge between Shiren and Reicia.

(No… That’s not—)

She wanted to clear the misunderstanding. More than anything else, that emotion drove her to move her lips.

And that choice—was fatal.

"The ritual is complete. Un-invited intruders will now be expelled from the sanctuary!!"

At Aleister’s words—

Reicia Blackguard, Kakine Teitoku, and Aleister Crowley vanished in an instant.

Leaving only Shiren behind.

Facts

◆ Amata Kihara died without relying on an escape such as becoming an AIM thought entity.
◆ Even with righteous intentions, one is not guaranteed to reach the righteous path.
◆ Especially when a liar is standing at one’s side.