Chapter 22: Twisted, Distorted Starting Point

『………Ahh… I just wanted… to live a normal life……』

『…Suou… the rest… I’m counting on you…』

…Ah. That dream again.

Blood on my hands. Filthy.

───You killed them.
Shut up.
───Atone.
Like I care.
───You were the one who should’ve died.
I know that better than anyone.
───Hurry up and save everyone.
I’ve been trying. Since way back.
───Rely on no one. Handle it all alone. Use whatever, whoever you must.
…I know.
───Even if it kills you.
I know.
I know that.

But even so…

…I’m just… tired.
Have been for a long time.

I’m scared.
It hurts.
It’s painful.

Somebody, please—somebody, help m—

"Haah!! …Haa…! Haa…!"

…Morning? No. Still dark outside.

"Again, this…!! Aaagh…!!"

Steady. I need to steady my breathing.

"Urgh…!"

…No, bathroom first.

"Ughh…! gag… cough… hack…"

…How long am I gonna keep doing this?
It’s been nearly ten years.

"…Haa… fuu…"

I run my fingers through my long hair—dark brown only at the tips—and gently untangle it.
Rinse the vomit from my mouth, leave the bathroom, and bury myself under the blanket.

A deep breath to chase away the goosebumps.
I wipe the cold sweat off with the blanket’s edge.

"……"

In the mirror across the room, I see me.

Faded white hair down to my knees, only the tips dyed dark brown.
Murky green irises. Pupils split into mismatched white and black—odd eyes.
And a slightly broken crown of thorns.

"…Yep. The usual me. No problem here."

It’s fine. It’ll work out.

"I’m fine."

I’m fine.

"I’m fine… I’m fine."

That’s why I(Watashi)—“I” (Ore)—am fine.
I’m fine.

What’s needed isn’t the me that worries.
Not the me that fails.
Not the me that’s weak.

What’s needed is the me who jokes around, lifts people up, saves them.
An adult version of me.

I’m fine.

"…Alright… today’s the day Misono Mika comes."

It’s been weeks since I confirmed the teacher’s presence.

Misono Mika—member of Trinity’s Student Council, the Tea Party—contacted Arius.
And today’s the day we meet.

…Time to prepare that too.

"…This’ll do."

I pour mystic energy into a nearby knife to sharpen it, gather my hair at the nape, and slice it off in one clean motion.

"Whoa—hah, almost scattered everywhere."

I open a nearby shelf and pull out the hair I’ve been saving.

"…This much should be enough for both. Let’s start with this one."

I weave the strands, forming them into cloth-like sheets.
After making several, I bundle them into a single larger container.

"Testing it… yeah, not really an option…"

I infuse the bag with mystic energy and seal a few wooden scraps inside.
"Call it a light experiment."

Soaking a cloth with oil, I set it ablaze and toss the bag into the fire.
When the flames die down, I retrieve it.

"Just as I thought. Not a single scorch. Now, let’s check inside…"

The wood within is untouched, not even singed.

"Yep. My hair’s definitely first-rate material."

My fighting style—using explosives for acceleration—has flaws.
Other bombs could detonate accidentally. My gear could take damage.

This solves that. By storing unused bombs inside and infusing the bag with mystic power, the risk of accidental detonation drops drastically.

"Maybe because it’s my own hair, the energy flows through it better…"

Anyway, with this, acceleration using bombs won’t be a problem anymore.

"Next!"

This time, I wove the strands straight—into a single rope.
White with streaks of brown.

"…Looks kind of creepy. Well, whatever."

I infused it with mystic energy and bound both arms with it.

"Hrrghhh!!! Nnnnghh…!! Deyaaa!! …Nope!!!"

Even holding back so it wouldn’t snap, it was strong enough that I couldn’t break free.

"Alright, done! …Uh, let’s see… H-Hair… Rope!!!"

…Whatever.
Names don’t matter. Performance does.

It won’t burn or tear—makes for a pretty useful item.
Could be used for restraints, movement, maybe even defense.

Let’s hope it comes in handy when I kill Beatrice.

"Ugh, frayed ends everywhere…"

I channel mystic power into a pair of scissors and trim my hair—now completely white.

"Perfect! …Huh, the sun’s already up?"

Guess that took longer than I thought.
The strands are thin, hard to handle.

"Alright then… fuu… …Yeah!! Time to go!"

I gathered my new gear and, as always, stepped outside.

"Hey everyone—!! Big sis Suou is here!!"

I knocked on the patched-up door of the run-down shack, its holes covered clumsily with wood.

Saori came out, looking slightly irritated.

"Do you have to be that loud this early…? Wait—what happened to your hair?"

"Geez, there you go again… I cut it, that’s all. Oh, and here—some food to share. Not much, but better than nothing. Anything troubling you?"

"…You’re a lifesaver, as always. No problems for now. …The house is holding up too."

"Well, it was my first time doing repairs, so it’s a little rough around the edges… hahaha."

"But there’s less draft now. Thanks to that, we can at least get through the cold."

Clothing, food, and shelter. The bare minimum.

Clothing came from our issued gear—basically uniforms.
For food, we scraped by with what we could farm or divert from elsewhere.
That left shelter as the real problem. Most people lived in abandoned ruins. Summer was bearable, but winter was brutal.

In Kivotos, the seasons cycle multiple times per “year.”
Actually, the very concept of a “year” here seems different from the one in my previous life.

That made measures against the cold essential. The solution was… a bit forceful: airy summer houses, and insulated winter ones.

"By the way, is it safe for you to come here so openly today?"

"Yes, no problem. If anyone asks, I’ll just say I came to meet Misono Mika."

"…Right, that’s today. Still, you should be careful—"

"That bitch—pardon, Beatrice—won’t notice a thing. She completely underestimates us. And besides… she doesn’t trust anyone."

I’d tried probing her a few times, but she never suspected a thing.
Not because she trusted us—
but because she believed she could handle anything. That her control was absolute. That there was no need for caution.

…That arrogance—I’ll shatter it someday.

"Calling her a bitch though… really now…"

『Suou. Good morning.』

While we were talking at the entrance, Atsuko appeared from behind.

"Atsuko, morning! …Don’t worry, no teachers around."

"…That’s a relief."

"I’ll be away for a bit today. If anything happens, call me immediately."

"Got it. Thanks."

"Um…"

Another face peeked out from inside—it was Hiyori.

"Hiyori! Morning!"

"G-good morning…"

She’s gotten used to us.
Before, she would never have come out from the back.

"I already gave the food to Saori. Make sure everyone shares it, okay?"

"R-really!? Yayyy!! …Ah, but you’re not gonna demand pets in return, are you…?"

"I have never said anything like that!!"

I’d never do something like that.

"It’s because my sisters want to cuddle me that it means something!!!"

"Uh… wow…"

"Suou…"

"…That was honestly kind of gross."

"Guh…!"

"…Noisy as ever."

Misaki had woken up too.

"Oh dear, everyone ended up awake after all… I’m sorry, did I wake you?"

"It’s fine, really… Besides, when you think about it, things have always been noisy around here."

"That’s not exactly comforting, you know!?"

…There was no bandage around Misaki’s neck.

"What’s with that look? Don’t tell me you’re panicking again, thinking there’s blood."

"Ugh… th-that was three years ago already, please forget about it…!"

Back then, my heart nearly stopped.
I honestly thought she’d tried to take her own life.

"You think I could’ve imagined you just cut yourself piercing an earring…!?"

But no—it was a total misunderstanding.
She’d only slipped while putting one in.
Sure, a tough girl like her doesn’t get injured often…
but that’s exactly why I panicked…!!!

…The bandage that had been on her left hand from the start—the scar there will probably never fade.

"…? Something wrong?"

"…N-no, nothing at all!"

I’ll have to keep an eye out, make sure things don’t pile up again.

"So then, we’re heading out soon…"

"You don’t need to worry so much. Leave things to me while you’re away… take care out there."

"…Yes! We’re off!"

"We’re going."

"…So. Weren’t we supposed to go meet Misono Mika?"

"Yeah, but I still have to hand out food to the other sisters too… And don’t forget, Shio’s coming along as one of the representatives, remember?"

"…Shio… the 7th Squad Captain, huh."

Seventh Squad Captain, Sakadaki Shio.
Another girl who became my “little sister” after I became a platoon leader.
Actually, most of the squad captains are girls I only met after taking on that role.
…That alone shows how harsh their training was.

"…Shio, huh… Wasn’t there someone else you could’ve chosen?"

"You mean her rank?"

Sure, compared to me, a platoon leader, and Saori, the 8th Squad Captain and Arius Squad Leader, her position is lower…

"No, that’s not what I mean… Wouldn’t the 5th Squad Captain—Yako—have been a better fit, personality-wise?"

"…That girl’s explosive in her own way… and obviously Yose is out of the question… As for Squads 1 through 4, I can’t move them so easily, and they each have their own issues…"

…Well, the teacher in charge of the opposing squad is technically one of our accomplices too.
It was risky, but otherwise… things would’ve ended up just like in the original.

"Captains of Squads 1 through 4, huh… I’ve heard they’re all quite the characters in their own right."

"I’ll introduce you later. Anyway, Shio’s the most stable option. Ah, here we are!"

We stopped in front of a small house.
I reached for the door to open it.

"…Good morn—wait, Suou Onee-chan…!?"

"Good morning, Shio. You haven’t forgotten today’s plan, have you?"

"Eh, no, of course not… but, um, hey… why is Jomae Saori here…?"

"That would be—"

"I’m your only little sister, Onee-chan…!!! I’m not letting you have her…!!"

…Yep. Same as always.

"Shio, that’s not right. That’s not right at all. I’m everyone’s Onee-chan."

"I—I know that, but… no, I still can’t accept it…! Onee-chan is my Onee-chan…!!"

"Stop assuming from the start that I’m your little sister!!! Ahh, this is exactly why I hate this… Damn it…!"

Shio was… without a doubt, the one whose mental state was the worst.
She was on the verge of breaking, unable even to pretend to obey.
She had leadership skills, but she couldn’t speak directly with people.

Just seeing someone would leave her gasping for breath, crying and screaming.
The trauma had burned that deeply into her.

What this girl needed wasn’t force, but distance.
I couldn’t push from my side. I had to wait for her to come forward herself.

"I’m calling over the radio! It’s me, Onee-chan!"

"…Another radio call… Go away."

So we started talking bit by bit through radio calls. Over the radio, she could talk to people.

…It’s only been within the past year that she’s been able to talk to anyone besides me.

"Well, fine then… we’re going to meet Mika now, right…?"

"Yeah, that’s right. From here on."

"I wasn’t asking you, Jomae Saori… I was asking Onee-chan…!!"

"Hey! Don’t treat someone’s kindness like it’s nothing. Saori answered because you asked."

"…I’m sorry…"

"…This is why I hate this…!"

And so, she’d come to treat me like her Onee-chan… but maybe because of that, she was harsher toward the other sisters.

That said, she was also the easiest one to handle.

"Anyway, we don’t have much time… let’s go already!"

A student with pink hair, dressed in white, winged clothes.

The fact that she stood there without a single guard—was that because of her overwhelming strength?

"Nice to meet you☆ I don’t know who you are, but… you’re Arius students, right?"

"Yes, it’s nice to meet you… It really is such a beautiful day today!! So calm and peaceful."

"Ahaha! I was thinking the exact same thing! Huh, you’re actually more talkative than I expected, aren’t you?"

…Misono Mika.

Her involvement with Saori had, in the original story, been the spark that set everything in motion—the beginning of the Eden Treaty arc.

At last. We’d finally made it here.

By twisting and bending the original story, we’d come this far.

I’d prepared everything. From here, it all depended on how this conversation went. The plan would be decided completely.

"Misono Mika. What’s your business with us?"

"Oh, going straight to the point? Personally, I’d like to break the ice a little first…"

"Break the ice…? Shatter some ice…? Onee-chan, what does that mean…?"

"Mm—it means to warm up first, to open the conversation! Yes, I mostly agree with that."

"Right, right! But small talk about the weather doesn’t last long… so what should we do next?"

"Uh… y-your hobbies, maybe…?"

"Feels kind of like an arranged marriage meeting, doesn’t it…?"

…This is where it begins.

From here, everything begins.

Failure is not an option.

To kill Beatrice.

To save everyone.

This first conversation has to be made into something meaningful.

"Hobbies, huh… Hmm, I wonder where the line starts for something to count as a hobby?"

"That depends on the person… But at the very least, anything you do even when you don’t have to—that’s what I’d call a hobby."

"Ah, I see, I see! Then my hobby would be…"

…No matter which version of the plan we follow. I’ll make sure it succeeds.

A Year in Kivotos

—The original work never explicitly states that multiple seasons pass within a single year.
—This setup was introduced to forcibly resolve chronological issues.