“Ariiiis…!!!”
“Ah, Momoi…”
Starting with Momoi, the members of the Game Development Club clung to Aris. Just a moment ago, it was questionable whether Aris was even there, let alone touch her.
…It’s not an urgent matter, so should we set it aside for now?
“Rion, Himari. It seems the situation itself has been resolved well.”
Speaking of which, what happened to Key after Aris regained her body? I can’t quite remember.
Looking at the current situation, it seems like Key will remain inside Aris going forward. Like ‘another me’ similar to a pharaoh crazy about duels in some manga or a Chinese game character with a second personality.
It’s hard to be sure what that means for us, but with Aris returning to how she was, the original objective has been achieved.
Moreover, considering how Key would have declared surrender a little later, I’m reminded of a landmine I could have stepped on… Ugh, that’s bad for the heart.
[…Phew, what a relief. If I had been careless, I might have… Hmm.]
Rion abruptly stopped speaking and let out a groan. It’s odd for someone who was determined to kill Aris to be saying something like that now.
[There’s still plenty we need to talk about, but for now, I guess we can consider the situation over. However, the attacks from the Nameless Guardians haven’t stopped…]
“Hmm? Don’t we have control of the Ark right now? So we could do something with that…”
[Unfortunately, that’s not possible. It seems that the only person allowed to command them, using the Ark as a medium, is the nameless goddess’s princess.]
Hearing Himari’s reply, I paused for a moment. I had to ask, even if I didn’t want to believe it.
“…So, that means there will be a battle when we return?”
[Yes, that seems likely…? However, since all production lines have been halted, I don’t think there will be any reinforcements.]
“Well, that’s somewhat relieving.”
It might take a bit of time to return, but since the incident seems to have been resolved well, what’s a little more time?
Thinking that, I turned my gaze aside. The sight of all the Game Development Club members gathered and embracing each other was truly heartwarming.
Aris returning to her rightful place is definitely something to be happy about.
Next, my eyes fell on Neru, who was standing there blankly, watching the scene.
“Hey, why don’t you go give Neru a hug too? Hmm?”
“…Shut up. I hate that kind of atmosphere.”
“Considering how much you missed Aris earlier, you seem to be a bit shy, our Neru-chan☆.”
“Huh? You jerk, let’s settle this another time!”
How embarrassed must she be for her reddened face to be so obvious as Neru came rushing at me. I dealt with her appropriately while waiting for the reunion of the Game Development Club to end.
Just as I was thinking I should check on Toki, who was standing a bit away, looking left out, I suddenly noticed Asuna fidgeting alone.
“Asuna-chan? What’s wrong?”
I doubted she wanted to go to the bathroom. After all, a pretty girl usually doesn’t go there unless she’s washing up.
“Hmm… I was thinking it might be time to go back!”
Asuna kept glancing at the direction we came from as she said this.
It felt like there’s a specific reason for that. Especially since it’s Asuna of all people.
Just as I was about to say we could talk when we returned, the lights of the Ark began to flicker. Soon, everything was engulfed in ominous red light.
[Ugh, um? What’s this…?]
“Himari-chan, the situation here feels strange! Do you know anything?”
[…The Ark’s systems are going into overdrive. It seems that if the control authority passes to the enemy, the system has been configured to go into overdrive without fail. So.]
[You need to get out of there right now! The Ark has started to fall!]
Following Rion’s explanation, Himari’s urgent shout reached everyone.
Understanding the situation, I bit my lip. I would get scolded by Nagisa later, but that wasn’t important. If we couldn’t return, there wouldn’t be any scolding to worry about.
“The Ark of Atrahasis is designed to somewhat ignore gravity. However, once the system goes into overdrive, everything changes. While we won’t accelerate, we can’t avoid falling.”
Everyone’s gaze turned to Aris. In that brief moment, I saw her personality switch to Key, so it seems the transition between them happens freely.
“The fortunate thing for all of you is that the self-destruct sequence hasn’t been activated. If we leave immediately, I’m confident we can make it in time.”
As Key said that, her eyes regained their blue color. And Aris smiled brightly.
“Thank you, Key!”
…What’s going on here? This is confusing. This is that double personality thing, right?
If the eye color change hadn’t given it away, it would have just looked like her head was messed up.
“Hahaha… What a day, it feels like we’re doing nothing but time attacks.”
“Uh, I think it’s more than just a feeling…”
…It’s just sad that Yuzu’s words are true.
“Toki-chan, Neru-chan. It’s time to gather our strength again☆.”
“Leave it to me, ma’am.”
“…Tch, I guess I have no choice.”
Still, I felt relieved that the way back seemed a bit easier since we could follow the remnants of the Nameless Guardians we smashed to return to Utnapishtim’s Ship.
This is just like Hansel and Gretel in real life!
“…But if the Ark is falling, shouldn’t there be a problem down below rather than with us?”
[Oh, you’re right…? I’ll attempt to communicate right away. If communication remains down, we can only hope for the best on the ground!]
Thus we resolved everything and headed back.
With news from the rear support team confirming that communication was back up, and that the expected landing point had already been evacuated, I could finally focus on returning to Utnapishtim’s Ship without worry.
*
[Hello, viewers in front of the TV! This is Kawaru Sinon, the idol reporter from the Kronos School News Department! I’m currently at Millenium Autonomous District, checking out the mysterious structure that suddenly appeared in the skies above!]
The sudden announcement caught Nagisa’s attention, causing the member of the Justice Realization Department next to her to flinch.
They were currently reviewing the situation in the area under the department’s jurisdiction, having come to delegate the treatment of injured civilians to the Rescue Knights nearby.
Time had passed since communication was lost with Mika, who was on the spaceship heading for the Ark of Atrahasis, and although she was doing her best to hide her unease, Nagisa’s patience was wearing thin.
Then, when the member of the Justice Realization Department turned on a news segment that caught her interest, Nagisa found it hard to look away.
“I-I’m sorry…”
Did she think she annoyed Nagisa? The member lowered the volume on her phone.
“…No, I didn’t look just because of that. Please turn it up instead.”
“O-Okay…!”
After the brief exchange, Nagisa returned her focus to the news.
[The Student Council is doing their best to assess the situation regarding the appearance of the structure! However, the mood in the Millennium Autonomous District is entirely different. As you can see, the streets here are completely empty. The residents have long since evacuated per the evacuation order issued by the Millennium seminar.]
The reporter continued to stir up controversy by comparing the Student Council’s passive response to the situation at Millennium, but soon received a reprimand from the desk.
After hearing that much, Nagisa concluded that there was no point in listening to the Kronos School news as usual. She lost interest and reached for the teacup in front of her.
[—Wait a second. Isn’t that structure tilting? I think it is… Wait? Shouldn’t I get my vision checked? No, my sight is perfectly fine!]
However, the reporter’s next words stopped Nagisa in her tracks.
[Do you see it, viewers? The structure above Millennium is slowly… Yes, it’s tilting so slowly it could be mistaken for an optical illusion! So,…]
“…Is it falling?”
Nagisa felt her lips go dry. Up there, Mika is present.
Of course, she knew others were with her, but the first thing that came to her mind was always Mika.
That was just fate.
That’s why Nagisa took her phone out with trembling hands.
She wasn’t unaware that Mika’s current location was somewhere with no communication. She had tried calling before.
So, she wasn’t expecting much as she pressed the call button, but deep down, she hoped that Mika would answer.
As she anxiously listened to the ringing, Nagisa’s eyes suddenly widened.
[Hello? Nagisa-chan?]
That was the moment Nagisa’s faint hope was rewarded.
“…Mika-san.”
[Hahaha. It’s my adorable one☆.]
Whether she knew about the situation she was in or not, Mika joked around, prompting Nagisa to take a deep breath before responding.
Just receiving the call was incredibly relieving, and she didn’t want to dampen the mood.
“Yes, that person for sure.”
[…Hmm. What’s up? I thought you’d say something a bit more… firm.]
“That’s something I’m saving for when we meet in person. So, how is everything on your end?”
[Yeah, everything’s all good. Now we just have to head down to the ground. There’s just a minor issue, but don’t worry too much about it!]
Knowing Mika well enough, Nagisa recognized that the statement was not a lie to reassure her.
Mika had almost never lied to her before, so she trusted it. Probably.
“…I’ll be waiting for you, my love. And don’t forget to be careful until the end.”
Mika fell silent for a moment.
Then, her clear laughter flowed through the phone speaker.
[Of course, I’ll be careful. Yeah, because I’m yours, Nagisa. By the way, what should we have for dinner tonight?]
The fact that she was joking around while going to and fro made Nagisa smile just enough to create a hollow laugh.
“If you’re beside me, I could happily starve for days, so just don’t get hurt and come back soon.”
[…Hahaha. I love you, Nagisa-chan.]
It was obvious that Mika was trying to end the call quickly as though she had something to hide.
Realizing that the time for her to lecture Mika was approaching, Nagisa understood this wasn’t going to take long.
On this day, a gigantic Ark fell within the Millennium Autonomous District.
The only casualties were injuries sustained by a girl stubbornly insisting on delivering the broadcast of the incident to viewers at the scene.
That, too, could be called a miracle.
