Disclaimer: I own nothing, this is purely a fanfic for enjoyment.
Cross-over from various games, books, anime, manga, and movies.
The familiar characters you see here belong to their respected authors and owners.
"Speech"
Time*
Chapter 52: Good News!
5 minutes later*
"Well?" Rion tapped her right foot impatiently, arms crossed, glaring at me with blazing eyes. "Are you not going to say anything?!"
"About what?" I raised an eyebrow, feigning ignorance as I glanced away, just in time to narrowly dodge the swipe of a knife that came alarmingly close to my right eye. At some point, Rion had drawn the blade without a sound. "Is this about me not saying anything after you revealed that Integra is coming to Japan?"
"Yes!" She snarled, lunging again—this time aiming for my heart.
I stepped to the side with practiced ease, her blade cutting through empty air. "Not much to say." I replied calmly, my hands still in my coat pockets. "And why are you attacking me? You don't usually stab me when you're mad."
Her eyes twitched. "You're acting like it's nothing!"
"It's not nothing." I said, my tone even. "But you still haven't answered my question. Why are you attacking me?"
"Because I keep seeing your death happen—nonstop—unless I do attack you!" Rion shouted, her voice cracking under the pressure.
She suddenly drew a pistol, leveling it at my head. Just before she could pull the trigger, she flipped the grip and swung the weapon instead, aiming to pistol-whip me.
"That doesn't make any sense." I leaned back to evade the strike, then flipped backward, using the momentum to kick the pistol from her hand mid-air. In one fluid motion, I launched off the ground and twisted over her, snatching the weapon before it could fall back down.
"Of course it doesn't make sense!" Rion snapped, her expression twisted with frustration and panic. "I'm seeing paths that shouldn't exist—none of them make sense, not even to me! If I stop for even a second... You die!"
She dashed forward, her hands a blur as she unleashed a barrage of impossibly fast, complex knife strikes. Any one of them could have carved me apart, but I moved with precision, slipping past each one with ease, my body reading hers faster than she could adjust.
My Spirituality continued to warn me—visions unfurling like afterimages in my mind's eye. Rion's attacks appeared as translucent overlays against the present, each strike playing out seconds before it happened. The world bent subtly with foresight, letting me glide just ahead of the danger.
Without drawing attention, I reached behind me and summoned the Cards of Blasphemy. As I drew a combat knife from within, its blade faintly pulsing with an eerie aura, the unmistakable taint of the Sefirot: City of Calamity.
A flicker through my left eye—a vision.
The knife now held a temporary enchantment: anything it touched would begin to weaken, corrode, and decay, eventually shattering with time. But the blade itself was not permanent. It would retain this power for only a week unless returned to the City of Calamity, tainting all it touched. The weapon was slowly becoming a Beyonder Weapon.
But it came at a cost.
Anyone who wielded it would feel a creeping hunger, a dark desire to destroy indiscriminately, friend or foe alike.
Luckily for me, I've just found the solution for this.
I stepped to the side with precise timing, letting Rion's latest strike pass harmlessly by. In the same motion, I brought the tainted knife, which I now referred to, for simplicity's sake, as the Breaking Knife, down hard against her blade.
With a sound like cracking bone, her knife shattered on impact.
I twirled the Breaking Knife once in my grip, feeling its unnatural weight settle into my palm.
I casually tossed Rion's pistol into the air and, with a sharp upward slash of the Breaking Knife, shattered it mid-flight. The fragments scattered like glass, falling to the ground before she could even attempt to reclaim the pistol.
"What the fuck…?! The paths—they're gone?!" Rion stared at me, stunned. Her eyes darted around as if trying to see something that had just vanished. "What's going on here?!"
"Let's just say your knife and pistol were cursed." I said, resume spinning the Breaking Knife between my fingers. "Without your knowledge, of course. They might've been the reason you kept seeing my death over and over again."
Rion narrowed her eyes, suspicion flickering beneath the confusion. "And how did you come to think something like that?"
"Let's just say I've learned many, many new things since we last saw each other." I smirked at Rion, watching her scowl deepen in response. "Anyway." I continued, idly twirling the Breaking Knife once more before letting it rest at my side. "Now that you're no longer trying to maim me in the name of keeping me alive, mind telling me why you're here in the first place?"
Of course, I already knew the answers. But with the Fates temporarily sealed away, all probabilities—no matter how unlikely—were now on the table.
"I wanted to test my luck in finding you." Rion admitted with a frustrated sigh. "But instead, you found me." She folded her arms, tilting her head slightly. "Speaking of which—how did you manage that anyway? I covered my tracks. Even for someone like you, that should've been nearly impossible."
I met her narrowed gaze with an easy look and offered a half-truth. "I've gained better control over my innate abilities. Perks of being a born Seer."
"I don't recall you being part of any Seer lineage." Rion said, frowning. "I do know you're from a spy lineage, which helped you become a decent ninja, at least."
"That's because I'm not from a Seer lineage." I smiled faintly. "First of my kind in the family. Just got a better hang of it now. I never had real control over it before… until recently."
"That explains a lot..." Rion muttered, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. Then, without warning, she yawned and stretched. "Anyway, it's getting late and I need my sleep if I'm going to keep up appearances. I'll see you and Sakamoto tomorrow at school. Later."
With a small shake of her head, she gave me a final nod and turned, quickly vanishing into the night beyond the ancient steps of Kawakami Temple.
I narrowed my eyes, watching until she was gone. Only then did I let out a slow breath and relax.
With a practiced motion, I slid the Breaking Knife back into the City of Calamity. The faint glow dimmed as the blade disappeared, and the Cards of Blasphemy glowed briefly before vanishing from sight.
I looked up at the night sky, the moon hanging high above me. Its pale light bathed the temple grounds in a soft glow, casting long shadows across the stone steps and old wooden beams.
I stood there for a few more minutes, letting the silence settle over me.
Then, without a word, I turned and began the walk back.
The next day*
It was a new day, and being the school nurse was both boring and frustrating in equal measure.
Most of my time was spent treating students who came in one after another for everything from paper cuts to full-on brawling injuries. Luckily, treating them wasn't too difficult, especially after skimming through a couple of medical guidebooks and memorizing what mattered.
Still, what annoyed me most were the delinquents, those cocky idiots with a compulsive need to show off how dangerous they were. Always swaggering in with bruises, split lips, or some half-baked tale about how they "slipped on the stairs." Sure.
Despite all that, it wasn't a bad gig. Peaceful, in its own weird way. Relaxing… even if it bored me to death half the time.
"I don't think I'd ever see us like this in the future." Rion said suddenly.
She was seated near the window, idly spinning a pen between her fingers. Sakamoto leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, quiet but observant. And me? I sat at the desk, pretending to read a report while mostly zoning out.
The three of us are hanging out in the school infirmary while classes are in session, or whatever is going on with this school
Stranger things have happened.
"Better than us dead, that's for sure." I smirked at Rion as I tossed the report aside, watching her scowl deepen.
She rolled her eyes. "You're insufferable sometimes."
"Also." I added, raising an eyebrow. "Aren't you supposed to be planning for gym class?"
"Not much to plan." Rion replied with a shrug. "I'll just make them run laps around the entire school until they're too exhausted to act out. Builds discipline."
"That sounds like pure laziness disguised as military training." I muttered.
"I prefer to call it 'efficient delegation.'" She leaned back in the chair, clearly unbothered. "I think it's more interesting that Sakamoto here is the security guard." She added, nodding toward him.
"I'm still confused why I'm the only security guard at this school." Sakamoto said, his gaze drifting toward the window. "Also, I've yet to identify any students with supernatural backgrounds or any signs of those from the secret factions."
"Give it time." I said, leaning forward. "They're either being cautious... or waiting for something."
Sakamoto didn't respond immediately. His eyes remained fixed on something beyond the school grounds, his fingers subtly tapping against his arm in thought.
Yeah. The Fates were still sealed, but that just meant all bets were off.
And someone was bound to test that.
"Oh yeah, how's it going with the Kawakami Clan's little fighting princess?" Rion asked, wearing that grin-the kind that meant nothing but trouble. "Word is, people are still trying to figure out how you managed to get her attention. Some even say you wooed your way into her heart."
"...I smashed her into a wall." I said flatly, tilting my head to stare at the ceiling. The memory played back with uncomfortable clarity. "That's probably how I made Momoyo fall for me."
Rion blinked. She looked over at Sakamoto, who met her stare with a helpless shrug, then turned her wide-eyed disbelief on me.
I caught it and tilted my head just enough to catch her reaction in the corner of my eye.
"What?" I asked, deadpan. "It's not like I ever tried pickup lines or gave her gifts. Not once since we met." I gestured lazily toward the window. "Besides, the first thing she did when greeting me was fire a laser beam punch at my head."
There was a moment of silence. Then Rion groaned and pressed a hand to her forehead.
"You're insane." She muttered.
"Apparently, that's her type." I said with a smirk.
"I know there are people out there who can pull off feats just as crazy as those supernatural creatures… but still." Rion shook her head, frustration tightening her expression.
"Don't you count as one of those people?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "With your whole 'Path-seeing' thing?"
"Oh, shut it." Rion snapped. "Besides, it can be taught. I've been training my niece to see the Paths too."
"I recall the list of new students enrolling this term." Sakamoto chimed in calmly. "Pretty sure I saw your niece's name on it."
"Hah?!" Rion whipped her head toward him, eyes wide in disbelief. "She what?!"
Sakamoto just gave her a flat look. "You didn't know?"
Rion looked like she was torn between storming out of the infirmary or exploding on the spot. "...I'm going to kill my sister." She muttered, rubbing her temples.