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An Elegant Time for Hunting 

Climbing up the stairs and running through the corridor, the first thing encountered was a trap room. 

From the open door, little Kurumi suddenly stopped her feet after entering inside. There was an ominous premonition. There was no furniture in this room……pure white walls, floors, and ceiling. ……No, looking closely, the four corners of the ceiling were slightly dirty. 

“…..Doesn’t something smell dangerous up ahead?” 

“Then, let’s have the playing cards go first. Go check ahead, Queen of Hearts.” 

“Orders understood!” 

The red Queen of Hearts drifted in the air and towards the center of the room. 

Little Kurumi and the others were observing the situation from outside the door. The sudden vibrations caused her to frown and look around to see if it was an earthquake??but their faces froze upon looking up. 

“Kurumi-chan-san! Up! Up!” 

“Stop it with that weird naming sense. So, what’s the matter above……?” 

A guillotine fell down just like a camera shutter. Little Kurumi, who had jumped back at that instant, was able to escape the trap without any issues. However, Queen of Hearts was unable to fall back and still imprisoned inside. 

“Queen of Hearts! Are you okay!?” 

“I-I’m okay! But please quickly help me……wait, aah! The ceiling is sinking??!” 

“What……!?” 

“Uwa, please stop! L-Like this, I’ll be crushed to death……!” 

Little Kurumi, Hibiki, and Carte could only helplessly watch the situation unfold. The steel shutter that fell down couldn’t be destroyed by playing cards or bullets. 

“Uh, don’t cry if I die. Please spread my ashes into the wind……ah, the ceiling, the ceiling……muguu!” 

A whimsical last request marked by a whimsical scream. 

“Queen of Hearts!” 

Carte screamed as the iron shutter opened. 

Sure enough, they saw that Queen of Hearts had indeed become flattened. But rather, since she was originally 2D, she remained virtually unharmed. 

“My nose is crushed, please help me……” 

“When such a thing happens, you should laugh.” 

“Did you say those last words just for fun?” 

“Just as you thought, yeah I knew about this!” 

“Please forgive me for driving others into a panic……” 

Embarrassed, Queen of Hearts placed her hand against her face. 

“But Kurumi-san, what are you going to do? We would likely be crushed to death……” 

“Yes, so we’ll dash through here.” 

“I don’t think I can run fast enough though……” 

“How fast can it be? It’s very simple.” 

Little Kurumi raised her short gun. 

“The Second Bullet <Bet>!” 

After shooting the bullet to delay the ceiling from collapsing, little Kurumi sprinted towards the center of the room. 

“Loading the next bullet, the Seventh Bullet <Zayin>……!” 

Perhaps sensing little Kurumi’s intrusion, the shutter on the other side exit began to descend down. However, before the exit could be completely sealed off, little Kurumi fired the time-stopping bullet……the Seventh Bullet <Zayin>. 

“Okay everyone, if you don’t hurry, I won’t look back!!” 

Hearing those words, everyone quickly rushed through the room. 

 

The next room arrived at was so terrifying that everyone stood petrified upon the door opening. 

Unlike the previous one, this room was so narrow that it was suffocating. Moreover, the room temperature was inexplicably low and the biggest feature was the Empties hanging on a chained hook stretched out from the ceiling. 

Everyone stopped at the entrance. However, the shutter behind had already fallen down so there is no choice but to move forward. Still, the sight of the numerous hanging Empties forced their feet to a halt. They weren’t moving at all and in their right hands were ordinary knives unlikely to be an Unsigned Angel. Their faces all look identical and were indistinguishable from each other. 

With vacant expressions, some were weakly lowering their heads as others were raising their heads. To be frank, this looked like a scene from a horror movie. 

And there was one problem. There was no such thing as corpses in the Neighboring World. If someone dies, they would disappear into particles of light. In other words, all of them should be 

‘alive’. Or they could be alive while also dead……that is to say reduced to being a so-called living corpse.” 

Hibiki gulped while clinging onto little Kurumi. 

“Kurumi-chan-san, isn’t this easy to deal with? Right, right?” 

“Stop calling me that. How many times do I need to repeat myself? ……Anyway yes, the Empty should be very easy.” 

“In that case……” 

“But can Hibiki-san easily win? Wouldn’t that be a simple matter? No problem my friend, I believe in you ? ” 

“Friends only when it’s convenient! Carte-san, it should be an easy victory for Carte-san! After all, you are the former Dominion!” 

“Don’t say it like that. How rude, Higoromo Hibiki. Anyway, uh, how can I say this……these Empties may be my former comrades……ah, I really can’t bear to attack them……” 

“It’s all nonsense to suddenly indicate such a heavy past! I absolutely don’t want to! It’s a horror scene house! It’s an area I’m definitely no good at!” 

“What are you saying Higoromo Hibiki! Be more conscious as a Quasi-Spirit serving a Spirit! 

It’s so envious!” 

“I am not serving under her! Kurumi-san and I are comrades who have cast one’s lot with each other!” 

“Ah really, I’m going on ahead. I can’t lose to these unmoving things!” 

“……Kurumi-chan-san, that’s like triggering a flag.” 

“Shut up! I’m going……I’m going!” 

Little Kurumi took a deep breath as she took a step forward. As soon as the sounds of footsteps were heard, the faces of all of the Empty zombies (pseudonym) turned towards little Kurumi. 

“Hiyah!” 

Little Kurumi couldn’t help but scream. Well, of course she could shoot at them. But for some reason, she felt that would only make things worse. 

(Kurumi-chan-san, are you okay!?) ? Gesture 

(I’m fine!! Please stay there! I will secure the route!) ? Gesture Fortunately, they didn’t approach close, just staring intently at little Kurumi. The feeling from their huge vacant eyes was quite terrifying. 

Tokisaki Kurumi was accustomed to being watched by the attentive gaze of others, but such a frosty sight was still an unprecedented experience. 

For a comparison, it was like being stared at by countless man-eating sharks. Little Kurumi subconsciously halted her breathing……slow steps……slow steps……but her nose…… 

“Achoo!” 

From that adorable sneeze, the Empties began to move as if something exploded. Swinging the knives in their hands and attacking all at the same time. Their movements were inhuman, more resembling the motions of a doll. 

“Kya??????????!” 

While screaming, little Kurumi fired from <Zafkiel>’s short gun. An Empty’s head was blown away from the blow. It would be reasonable to say that this should be sufficient to make them disappear along with their Astral Dress. But even this wasn’t a fatal wound, as the zombie Empty kept swinging her knife without a head. 

It hurts, or rather it should be said that this was exceedingly frightening. 

“Bastard……!” 

“L-Let me come help!” 

“We’re coming too!” 

“I’ll have to abstain……” 

While thinking and trying to catch up with what had happened, Hibiki, Carte, and the playing cards entered the room. An Empty Zombie twisted its neck to intercept them. 

The Empty zombies were just like a doll with a frame feed. Rather than using their eyes to see what was in front, they moved to cut down anything that made any noise. 

“Feet! Aim at their feet!” 

Carte slashed their white feet with her playing cards. However, the Empties didn’t care for this as they continued tenaciously springing up to pursue little Kurumi. 

“What is this, what is this!?” 

While in tears, Hibiki frantically waved her Unsigned Angel <King Killing> to repel the enemy. 

“How are these Empties so strong……!?” 

“This shouldn’t be called strong! You should regard them as persistent!” 

Undead, while not pleasant to hear, they should be regarded as insects. The battle had begun to engage in mutual destruction. While struggling with the pain of her back being slashed, little Kurumi managed to secure a route to the next room. 

“The First Bullet <Aleph>!” 

She shot the bullet at herself, leaping to escape while striking back at the heads of the Empty zombies. After securing her back, little Kurumi shredded the Empty zombies with bullets as the sound of their knives falling to the ground was heard. 

“It’s nice that these children don’t bleed, since if this was reality, this would be super bloody!” 

“Less nonsense and quickly come over here!” 

Listening to little Kurumi’s command, Hibiki rushed over in a hurry to join her. 

“Hibiki-san! Please check if there is anything behind that door!” 

“……There’s the corridor! There’s nothing else for the time being!” 

Hibiki yelled after she opened the door. 

“Carte-san! Please let the playing cards carry Cistus!” 

“Alright! Ace of Spades! Nine of Diamonds! Carry her!” 

“At your command!” “Understood!” 

“Thank you for the trouble.” 

Cistus floated in the air as she was being carried forward by the two playing cards. Although the Empty zombies leaped into the air to attack her, they were shot down one after the other by little Kurumi who had arrived at the exit and Hibiki who had borrowed <Zafkiel>’s long gun. 

Carte opened the door. Queen of Hearts and Four of Clubs protected them as little Kurumi frantically sniped the girls in front. 

A single Empty zombie grabbed the edge of Ace of Spades. 

“Ku……Nine of Diamonds! Since I am leaving the team first, I leave the rest to you!” 

As Ace of Spades said that while handing Cistus over to Nine of Diamonds, she slashed back at the Empty that had grabbed her. 

“Leave it to me!” 

“Ace of Spades! Is there no way to come over here!?” 

“It’s impossible! That’s why I’m departing here! Farewell!” 

“……Yes, I understand! Thank you for your dedication!” 

“This is also the fate for the next me! No need to worry about it!” 

At the same time, surely while looking at little Kurumi and Hibiki, Ace of Spades’ face was crying. But it only happened for an instant. 

Along with Cistus who was being carried, Kurumi and Hibiki pressed on into the corridor, slamming the door shut to prevent the swarming Empties from following after them. 

Kurumi, Cistus, and Hibiki fell into a depressing silence. 

“Ace of Spades……those ending sentences were the best to distinguish her…… sniff sniff !” 

“Is that what you should say now!?” 

“It?is?” 

Ace of Spades, with the corners of her playing card torn, slipped through the cracks of the door as if to ridicule Hibiki for saying that. 

“……I thought I would be generously sacrificed! Sorry, I’m still alive! It’s just the corners that are broken! Opps, master was really crying!” 

“Hey, give me back my tears! Give them back! Why do you guys have to make me cry everything you say goodbye!?” 

Carte looked seriously angry. 

Forty-Seven Minutes Remaining 

 

Running through the corridor??they didn’t hesitate to purge the Empties suspected of being on patrol along the way. 

They didn’t know if those Empty zombies were willing or coerced into being reduced to that. 

But at the same time for allowing the existence of that room and the Jabberwocky, all of the Empties in the Third Region Binah had become Tokisaki Kurumi’s enemies. 

Because everyone was acting together, it was difficult to hide their whereabouts. Consequently, the playing cards took the lead in disguising as walls and ceilings so they could avoid fighting. If conflict becomes unavoidable, they tried to finish it as quickly as possible with minimal noise. 

Fortunately, Carte’s Unsigned Angel <Servante Éphémère> could be thrown without making a sound at all. 

“As long as we don’t encounter the three executives, I can take them out stealthily like this.” 

While saying that, she buried the Empties in the blink of an eye. 

To be honest, Hibiki felt that she was strong. It was a different type of strength from Tsuan. 

Tsuan’s strength was in direct confrontation, a destructive power that could crush any clever scheme to win the match 

In contrast, Carte’s strength was using misdirection to target the opponent’s weak point. She would use the playing cards under her control to confuse her opponents, conjuring and making them vanish just like a magic trick. 

Hibiki realized that it was the same quality as Tokisaki Kurumi’s strength. 

Previously, when she was spending those peaceful days in the Tenth Region Malkuth together with Hiriyu Yue, she had heard stories of the Third Spirit genus from her. 

Yeah, I’m sure they are weak. I’m confident in winning ten times out of every ten fights. 

But how to describe it? What I want to say is that unlike other Quasi-Spirits, Quasi-Spirits of the Third Spirit Genus are incomprehensible. I occasionally think that if their abilities are trained, it will be me who loses next time. 

I won’t know what happens next. That feeling of unease……it’s a little addicting. 

As a Third Spirit Genus and the Dominion of the Third Region Binah, Carte certainly possessed incomparable strength. For this reason, Hibiki felt a strange sense of restlessness. 

“Please find me! Ah, no! Please let me find!” 

“This is too troublesome……” 

Queen of Hearts seemed to have found the door and danced lightly. 

“Thank you, Queen of Hearts.” 

“Now, let’s open this door first??oh?” 

Little Kurumi stopped her hands while reaching for the doorknob. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“There’s no…….” 

Hibiki found the crux of the problem upon seeing the door. The door was particularly eye-catching in this white corridor. 

A white astronomical clock (not moving) occupied the upper half of the door and the lower half was engraved with text. And there’s one more important point. 

“There’s no……doorknob.” 

There was doorknob required to open the door. 

“If that’s the case, the key lies in the text written over there.” 

“Red, black, blue, white. Both sooner and later.” 

“Concepts, concepts, just concepts. A sure-hit can’t be mastered or touched.” 

“This is the door to the Snark. Only one shot or penalty will be delivered.” 

“Can I consider here……to be the room where the Snark dwells?” 

From Hibiki’s perspective, besides the addition of the name Snark, Hibiki couldn’t understand the meaning of the other words. The playing cards seemed to be the same as her, mumbling and racking their heads over the question. 

Carte spoke out. 

“I know what the answer is……but I still don’t know how to open that door.” 

“Eh, have you solved the puzzle?” 

“That’s right. It’s simple.” 

Simple, Hibiki whispered that as she once again looked at the text. 

……To be frank, the meaning was still unclear. Likely feeling her growing impatience, Cistus gently tapped her back to tell her the answer. 

(It’s the sky.) 

“……Oh, the sky!” 

“Yes, the sky.” 

Red at dusk, black during night, blue in the morning, and white when snow falls, nothing else changes more with time. 

The answer was simple, but the problem was in the next question. 

If this was the answer, what was the meaning of such emphasis being placed on the sky? 

“Hmm……” 

Little Kurumi pondered over this as she kept her eyes on the astronomical clock. Perhaps because of her ability to manipulate time, Tokisaki Kurumi was well versed in watches. While drawing from her knowledge, there were many different varieties of astronomical clocks to the point where there was no fixed form. 

The only fixed requirement was the ability to measure the 12 zodiac signs and the elliptical cycle of the sun and moon. Of course without this an astronomical clock would just be a normal clock. 

On this clock, other than time, it had the 12 zodiac signs depicted on the dial. 

Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces……there seemed to be no Ophiuchus. 

Does landing a sure hit on the sky mean choosing from one of these choices? 

However, there was no hint. 

“The last sentence referring to a penalty only gives a bad feeling……” 

“But what does this mystery exist for in the first place?” 

If this was an important place more guards would be station here. But rather that strict vigilance, they neglected that in favor of a single puzzle. 

Although it wasn’t clear what this meant, their first priority was to solve this mystery. 

The first line referring to the sky, the second line was a hint to the sky, and the third line referred to a punishment if answered incorrectly. 

Because it was too concise, there was no room for thinking. 

“Hibiki-san, Carte-san, and also me , if you have any ideas, please feel free to say it.” 

“Nmm……Carte-san, here you go!” 

“The second line holds another meaning……” 

“The same holds true for the third line.” 

The first line referring to the sky and there was nothing wrong with this. Then by breaking down the second and third lines, there should be hints for the particular constellation. 

There’s nothing referring to animals??Aries, Taurus, Scorpio, Leo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Pisces are eliminated. The remaining left are Gemini, Virgo, Libra, Sagittarius and Aquarius. 

“There are no words that would form a pair.” ??Gemini eliminated. 

“There are no words indicating femininity.” ??Virgo eliminated. 

“For Libra, it would be scales in equilibrium or tilting to one side. Yeah……it can’t be that.” 

“Sagittarius and Aquarius……the contents of that line pointed to the sky, a line referring to a bow and arrow would be……” 

……Mentioning up to that point, little Kurumi and Cistus pointed to a single word at the same time. 

“There’s that.” 

Sure-hit, this word did nothing else but indicate a bow and arrow. 

“So, it’s Sagittarius??” 

Little Kurumi said that while slowly extending out her fingers??just before touching the Sagittarius icon, Hibiki shouted. 

“Wait a minute????!” 

Hibiki quickly pulled back little Kurumi’s hand with enough force to snap her fingers. 

“Ouch, it hurts!? What are you doing????!?” 

“The second line! Look carefully at the second line! It can’t be mastered or touched! Don’t directly touch the Sagittarius crest!” 

Hearing those words, little Kurumi also promptly drew back. Surely, just as Hibiki had said, she mustn’t touch the Sagittarius crest. 

Otherwise, the second line wouldn’t make much sense. For this reason, the first line didn’t include this hint. 

“If it’s forbidden to be mastered or touched, how do??” 

As Carte asked, little Kurumi was at last able to understand everything. 

“Then the only choice would be to shoot.” 

Little Kurumi gracefully lifted her short gun with a charming smile. 

The target was the Sagittarius crest shining in the sky. A sure hit on an icon that couldn’t be grasped or touched. 

She buckled down on the trigger. 

The bullet didn’t touch any other constellations, only the Sagittarius icon. Subsequently, the huge iron door trembled and began to move. 

“Yay!” 

“It’s too early to celebrate, Higoromo Hibiki. Now, I have to brace my nerves for hunting the Snark.” 

“Guh……t-that’s true. Let’s work hard!” 

Hibiki clutched her hand after hearing what Carte had said. At the same time, Cistus raised her hand with a tired look like usual. 

“Um, my apologies. We will proceed from here. Is that right, me?” 

“……Ara, ara, are you sure, Cistus? I don’t care if you want to follow.” 

“Because it is me , I understand what needs to be done. Wouldn’t it be easier for two people rather than one? I have to help a little as well.” 

“Well, is that really a good idea?” 

“Yes, yes. So shall we proceed, me ?” 

“Hibiki-san, Carte-san, you two are on standby here.” 

Both Hibiki and Carte gave a stunned look. 

“You’re only letting two people go?” 

 

Although it’s abrupt, do you want to talk about youkai? 

As little Kurumi asked that, Cistus gave an amused smile while replying back with, “by all means”. 

Little Kurumi nodded, speaking without fear in a room where the Snark should already be present. 

“Youkai are a mixture of many legends and beliefs, but to put it bluntly it is nothing more than a phenomenon. It not caused by doing evil, but rather it is that very stigma which grows into a Youkai.” 

“In other words, it’s the victims that create the Youkai. The implications of such a story are deeply profound.” 

The inside of this room was also an unknown phenomenon. A starry night set in a lush forest of trees. Little Kurumi thought it would be the same as the flower field. Even if they tried flying up, they would probably be blocked by something. 

The air was quiet as an uncomfortable chill was covering the body. Without Hibiki’s support, walking would be too difficult for Cistus who was leaning against a tree. 

The two of them could naturally sense something was there, but this couldn’t be seen. Moreover, they could clearly understand her feelings. 

“Fear me.” 

There were signs of breathing, but nothing was visible. There were sounds of laughter, but no traces could be caught. But, there was the feeling of her approaching little by little. 

……However. Little Kurumi and Cistus neither panicked nor raised their guns as they continued to have a peaceful conversation. 

“For example, if a whirlwind blew in a cold dry land and unconsciously injured the skin of people walking on the road??it would be an incredible sight to behold. However, by naming this phenomenon Kamaitachi, it would no longer be unimaginable even if still terrifying. And after further analysis of the principles behind this event, it wouldn’t even feel terrifying anymore.” 

That is to say a Kamaitachi isn’t a mysterious thing. It’s a natural phenomenon and not due to God’s anger or Buddha’s punishment. 

“Bizarre, mysterious, and inexplicable things??such names are given to things not understood. 

However, the reverse is true for the Snark. It is because the Snark is a monster or youkai that 

exists only in imagination. It would be difficult to predict what will occur with a fictional existence. So from here, it’s possible that everything we say will come true.” 

It was no wonder that Carte and her playing cards were defeated. 

She treated the Snark as an unknown horror. Perhaps, she had cried out like this. 

“I can’t see it!” “Where is that attack coming from!?” “I don’t know where it will come from!” 

And the most important point, “I can’t win!” 

As long as these ideas were deeply rooted in the heart, the Snark would operate on such concepts. 

Transforming into an invisible, unclear, unknown, and invincible monster……but conversely everything would be easy so long as these rules were followed. 

“Shall we go now, Cistus?” 

“Yes, yes. I can leave at any time, me .” 

Jumping up, little Kurumi spun around and fearlessly declared in a loud voice. 

“Chant once to define. Chant twice to lock down. Chant thrice to become real.” 

“The Snark is here, right here. Of course it is absolutely visible. Isn’t that right, me ?” 

“Yes, yes, naturally. The Snark is here. It won’t jump and it won’t fly. It’s slow and right in front of us!” 

“Incompetent Snark! Useless Snark! Cowardly Snark!” 

“Idle, helpless, thoughtless, shameless, uncouth, and ignorant!” 

“By now a Snark that is impossible to become a Boojum!” 

At that moment, the magic was lifted. 

A faceless girl sat on the ground paralyzed. The girl feared as the invincible Snark was now overcome with shock. Despite not having any discernible facial features, it was clear that her emotions had fallen into disarray. 

“How come……why……” 

Little Kurumi ruthlessly informed her. 

“I’m well aware of the thoughts of the White Queen whom you worship. After all, even if she is an inverse, she is still us . Now that I know of the existence of the Snark, how can I not know how to make you reappear?” 

The concept of ignorance was forever without equal. From the understanding of her habits and characteristics, this was a simple move for unconditional victory. This would indeed be a suitable guard for the vault that stored time. 

“I have no resentment towards you. But since you joined the White Queen’s camp, you are my enemy. Now, return my time.” 

“……!” 

Whether if it was to escape or confront them, the Snark bared her fangs. However, the bullet was a step faster than her. 

Shot down, the Snark let out a fervent wail. 

“……Why……you have to be against the White Queen……anyway, you all……sooner or later……will die……” 

Little Kurumi sneered at those last remarks. 


“At least we know how to use our own lives.” 

She shot at her again. 

As the invincible Snark died, the night sky and dense forest disappeared. 

In its place, countless watches appeared. 

From alarm clocks, table clocks, wall clocks, hourglasses, and watches, this seemed to be a gathering place for every clock in the world. 

As Cistus stood up a little, she let out a joyful trembling voice. 

“Ah, ah, this is too terrific! I’ve found our time!” 

“Is this all……time?” 

If so, then this was enormous. If one clock represented one person’s worth of time, then this warehouse held enough for a thousand people. 

“Whatever the White Queen is planning, this gives us the advantage. For her, time is power.” 

Cistus lovingly touched one clock after the other, whispering as if in a fantasy. 

“So the problem is solved for the time being. In this manner, the puzzle was more difficult. Let’s call Hibiki-san and the others now.” 

“…… Me . Can you give me a brief moment?” 

Listening to Cistus, Kurumi, who still had a youthful look, tilted her head. 

“Is there any problems?” 

“I’m sorry, actually this was my goal. I wanted an opportunity to discuss this with me .” 

“It doesn’t matter……” 

As Kurumi shrugged her shoulders, Cistus meekly nodded. Her eyes had the same calm and indifferent look as her own. 

“We should not exist in this Neighboring World. Do you remember this?” 

“……What are you talking about?” 

Cistus’s words felt like thorns piercing her chest. 

“As I recall, our goal is to defeat the Spirit of Origin. That alone can never be surrendered no matter what. Do you remember, me ?” 

“Of course, of course I understand. So I have to go through the Neighboring World??” 

I want to go through and see that person. These feelings were difficult to endure. 

“Then, please don’t get too attached to Higoromo Hibiki-san.” 

“……Why?” 

“We are Spirits. She is a Quasi-Spirit. More than anything else, there is an inequitable disparity. 

Do you understand, me ?” 

“That may be true, but I’ve gone through life and death situations with her.” 

“Even if a day will come where you’ll need to part ways with her?” 

……Of course, she knew that. Kurumi wanted to argue this, but she could only sigh when stared at by Cistus’s sincere eyes. 

“Making a friend will cause emotions to spurge out. Can you be certain that one day this incident won’t lead to a life crisis in the worst possible form?” 

Kurumi thought that there was nothing with Cistus’s words. Higoromo Hibiki was a first, at the very least the first time a different person was willing to fight together with her. 

“……But I……I will never forget my dreams and goals.” 

“Then I ask you to take careful heed of this and not go back on those words. We are after all??people who have taken temporary refuge in this world.” 

Certainly, as Kurumi said, this world is a temporary home for Tokisaki Kurumi. 

But if she said that, this world??who owns it in the first place? 

“What are Quasi-Spirits? Cistus, do you know anything about them?” 

“Sometimes the Empties that were tortured talked about themselves to the White Queen. From what I’ve eavesdropped, they don’t seem to be ghosts.” 

“I think so too. If this was a post-mortem world, it’s strange that there are only girls around or younger than me here.” 

“It is very strange……” 

It was said that there were once Spirits here. 

Was the reason why nobody was talking about that era because no knew about it or was it something deliberately avoided in discussions? 

“However, they are certainly not pure Spirits. At the very least, they have had some sort of opportunity to come to this Neighboring world from the real world.” 

That was certainly true. 

Hibiki had mentioned this several times and it seemed other Quasi-Spirits mentioned this when she was in Hibiki’s form. 

“Some people wanted to just escape the outside world and others were just involuntary. I think it has nothing to do with willpower. The girls that drifted from reality to the Neighboring World were chosen at random.” 

“……But, what is this……” 

“And they lived here and built this world. With the Dominion at the apex, it is divided into ten regions. In other words, it should be called a society. And we are the worst foreign entity in a society……a God.” 

Those words unrelentingly gouged out Tokisaki Kurumi’s heart. 

Cistus thinly smiled as she watched Kurumi be struck with shock at this information. 

“??Yes. So God must have the demeanor of one. Isn’t that right, me ?” 

Twenty-Nine Minutes Remaining 

 

Anyway, after confirming the room was safe, Kurumi invited Hibiki and Carte into the room. 

Hibiki pouted while looking somewhat dissatisfied. 

“Too slow!” 

“Truly it was too slow. Spending time with Higoromo Hibiki was really awkward.” 

“……I can’t take responsibility for the relationship between you two.” 

“Anyway, are you still trapped in that form? I thought you would have definitely already been restored to your original state.” 

“Yes, yes, I wanted to ask you……how do I turn back to normal?” 

A serious matter was brought up. 

No one knew how to get her back to normal. 

“One of these is probably what took Kurumi-san’s time away……” 

Countless, clocks, clocks, and clocks. 

“……So then……what should I do?” 

“Generally, if you break it, you should break the seal……” 

“I feel that’s feasible. How about trying that one by one?” 

“I’ve considered a lot and there seems to be no other way……” 

“So let be the experiment. Anyway, I also have to get my time back.” 

Cistus came over and slammed the clock she grabbed onto the floor. White smoke leaked out from it, surrounding and disappearing into her as if absorbed. 

“How is it?” 

“…… Me . Can you please lend <Zafkiel>?” 

Cistus held up the short gun handed to her by little Kurumi, She rotate the gun around the trigger and aimed for firing. 

A loud roar, the bullet shattered as it sank into the wall. 

“It’s still incomplete……but this seems to be the correct answer.” 

Hearing those words, everyone felt relieved. 

“Then I’m up next……!” 

Kurumi immediately destroyed a nearby watch. Breathing in the white smoke, she changed from a beautiful girl at around 7 years old to one around the age of 10. 

Kurumi cleared her throat and turned around with an angelic smile. 

“How is it?” 

“Still lovely looking.” “Camera! Camera! Cameraaaaaa!” “Ah……please look in the mirror.” 

Three different responses each from three different people. Kurumi used the mirror to confirm her appearance and understood that she only grew up by 3 more years. Curling up her sleeves, she decided to destroy the next clock. Kurumi guessed that this time she would grow up to 13 

years old. But she didn’t expect it to be a huge mistake?? 

She had turned into a 5 year old. 

What appeared now was Tokisaki Kurumi with a bob hairstyle. 

“I’ve suddenly reversed back again!” 

“My Kurumi-san, smiling like an angel……” “Higoromo Hibiki’s expression is dangerous. The playing cards are risking their lives trying to stop her!” “Ara, ara, we’ve gone back to square one. 

Perhaps the direction of the time snatched away is different. It seems we must find just the right amount of time to restore you.” 

Kurumi hurriedly found clocks similar to her first attempt and destroyed them. 

“7 years old!” “10 years old!” “About 11 years old……?” 

Three of them had been destroyed and she still hadn’t left elementary school age. Growing impatient, Kurumi used <Zafkiel> to destroy a huge clock and inhale the white smoke naturally generated. 

“S-Smartphone……smartphone camera……” 

Higoromo Hibiki was already completely engrossed by Kurumi’s lovable figure. While swaying unsteadily, she held her smartphone while operating the camera function. 

How old was she now? 

12 years old or maybe 14 years old? Her slender limbs had reached junior high school age. 

Wasn’t this ideal, Kurumi-san at age where she couldn’t connect well with others. 

While thinking over this, she watched Kurumi changed again after inhaling the white smoke. 

This time her height grew close to when she was 17 years old. 

“……At last restored to my original state……” 

A lazier voice than usual. An emergency alarm sounded in Hibiki’s brain. No, don’t look at the current Tokisaki Kurumi. If she looked, she would surely die from the excitement. 

“How is it, Hibiki-san……” 

However, Hibiki hearing her name be called out caused her to reflexively turn to Kurumi. 

Returning to the age of 17, her limbs had gained more volume, but it was more sensual than anything else. Her hair was long and loose like a gentle wave. 

It was a married woman. Perhaps one frustrated by the loss of her husband dying early. A person who caused men of all ages to lose control of themselves. Someone who looked super-suitable in an apron. 

“Hey!” 

“Your nostrils are bleeding!” 

Hibiki thought to herself while gazing and rushing towards the current Tokisaki Kurumi (27 

years old widow). 

Once this person grows up, she is bound to become a super evil woman that exists to bewitch both men and women. 

 

After so many twists and turns, Kurumi finally managed to regain her original appearance. 

Hibiki said while biting her handkerchief and shedding tears. 

“Uuu. Good-bye, little, tiny, and adorable Kurumi-san……” 

“I’ll beat you up if you dare say that next time.” 

“And hello fair, beautiful, and lovely Kurumi-san!” 

“Good. Address me as such next time.” 

“Are you sure? Is that acceptable?” 

Confronted by Cistus’s criticism, Kurumi chose to let it go in one ear and out the other. 

“More than that Cistus, have you also regained your strength?” 

“Yes, although not as well as me , at the very least to the extent of no longer falling behind in battle.” 

“Even if you are fighting against the White Queen?” 

Cistus gave a troubled smile as she shook her head. 

“Unfortunately, I am a clone. I don’t have that much power.” 

Kurumi was convinced that this would be the case. Somewhere in heart, there was the feeling of something being off??but because it was too frightening, she didn’t dare confront this. 

“Alright, moving on from this point for now. Carte-san, I’ve regained my strength. If the White Queen is absent, there is the opportunity of reclaiming this region. Isn’t that correct?” 

Carte nodded while making a loud declaration. 

“Thank you Tokisaki Kurumi. I will take back this Third Region Binah!” 

Immediately after proclaiming this, the earth began to shake again. 

“……Could it be that again?” 

“No, it’s impossible for rearrangement to happen again so quickly. This must be……” 

“Compile??!!” 

When a Spirit in the other world experiences a strong emotion?? 

It would become a pillar of memories presented in this Neighboring World. There are memories that would cause trauma from ever singing again and also passionate memories that would cause people to fall in love. 

“Is everyone okay!?” 

“No problem, it seems to be happening very close, but……wait a minute, where are you going!?” 

Kurumi was running without knowing the reason. There’s no reason why the Spirit’s memories would mean memories of that person??she knew that. It may very well be a painful memory??she knew that. She knew but her feet wouldn’t stop. 

Even if it was a memory that wasn’t her own……it was fine. If there was the mere possibility of seeing that person, meeting that person in that memory, she would continue to run without hesitation. 

The Empties encountered along the way where all knocked down with her barely acknowledging them. The sound she heard was nearby. Kurumi blew away each door she saw and quickly checked inside. 

Not here, not here, no, no, no, no, no, not here at all……! 

The last door looked familiar. It was definitely that trap door. Naturally, she blew it away with 

<Zafkiel>. 

Inside the room was the huge aggregate Jabberwocky, and also?? 

“Don’t touch that pillar!” 

Jabberwocky, who was about to reach out to the pillar, turned around and her compound eyes crossed their line of sight with Kurumi. 

“……I will say it again. Listen carefully, don’t touch that pillar. Otherwise, I will split you into eight pieces.” 

It was a simple threat rather than advice. 

“Ara.” 

“Ara, ara, ara.” 

“The miserable loser has come again!” 

“This just saves us the trouble of searching!” 

As Jabberwocky sneered, Kurumi crossed her hands against her waist and gave an invincible smile. 

“I don’t care about you. For me, that memory is the most important thing. If you reach out your hand again??” 

It seemed the Jabberwocky wasn’t intending to let her finish. She rushed towards Kurumi within a single breath. 

“……Well, this looks like an excuse to return the favor.” 

Kurumi activated <Zafkiel>, summoning the huge clock and firing the First Bullet <Aleph> through the short gun on herself to fly at high speed. At the same time, the long gun fired a bullet towards the arm that the Jabberwocky had extended. 

The arm ruptured as its physical form crumbled. The Empties that had been torn apart instantly disappeared. 

The White Queen’s horrible taste, a conglomeration of Empties, a giant built from the bodies of those girls. That was the Jabberwocky. 

However. 

She didn’t want to sympathize with them. It should be said that her sympathy meant giving them a fatal blow as soon as possible. Their lives were already long over. When they became this Jabberwocky, when they decided to serve the White Queen, it was already long over! 

“Thisssssssss……!” 

Kurumi screamed as she dealt damage onto her. 

This needed to be destroyed into fine dust without any mercy. 

When looking into the eyes of others, there ought to be some other emotion left besides hatred. 

Are they really happy to have become such a monster? Wasn’t there any fear in their hearts for being reduced into such a stupid creature? 

If she had taken a wrong step, she would have also become part of this monster?? 

Tokisaki Kurumi above all couldn’t accept this fact. 

However, excessive anger and sense of mission caused Kurumi to make a mistake. 

“It can’t be helped! It can’t be helped!” 

“Since it’s become like this, I’ll have to do this ahead of schedule!” 

“If we want to end this rebel against the White Queen!” 

“The Queen will surely be happy! She’ll praise us!” 

The giant transformed. 

“Wha……!?” 

The pure white giant transformed into a pure white dragon. Its huge opened jaw and surrounding long neck??intertwined with Kurumi’s line of sight. 

“……! The First Bullet <Aleph>!” 

Her response was too slow. The fire from the white dragon directly struck Kurumi. As her Astral Dress burned, she was blown away towards the wall before being caught in the Jabberwocky’s claws. 

“Th, is……!” 

Every bone in Kurumi’s body began to creak. The tips of her bones had already cracked. The severe pain thoroughly attacking Kurumi made it difficult to resist fainting. 

“For the White Queen!” 

“To slaughter for the White Queen!” 

“To be brutal for the White Queen!” 

“This pillar that the White Queen values!” 

“I must keep it safe! Ah, but I really wanted to experience it once!” 

“I want to see that person! Every time the White Queen would whisper and her cheeks blush for that person!” 

In that instant, the pain went away. 

“……What did you just say?” 

Kurumi fired her bullets at the fingers gripping against her. 

“Cheeks blushing for that person? That White Queen, lacking any tact……is planning to lay her hands on the person that belongs to me?” 

Something within her mind had snapped. Kurumi relentlessly fired countless bullets at the Jabberwocky’s eyebrows, eyes, and mouth, causing the monster to recoil backwards in pain. 

Kurumi used her long rifle to smash apart the beast’s jaw into pieces. 

“This pillar is mine.” 

Taking the opportunity as the Jabberwocky was clutching her jaw in pain, Kurumi reached out for the pillar. No matter what sort of memory, it didn’t matter what she would remember. 

Even if it meant being spoken ill of, even if it was whispers of love, she thought it would be fine. 

She truly thought so. 

 

Many Spirits lack memories, have their memories blurred, or have many painful memories. For example, it may be the malice of society brimming with the conviction of killing the enemy. 

However, ever since meeting that boy, feelings of joy began to overflow. 

Additionally, the success was due to the present location being the Third Region Binah. 

What she experienced was the memories of Tokisaki Kurumi. 

Taking notice, this was a small room. Judging from the school uniform on the hanger, this was a boy’s room. It felt a little chilly……or rather it should be mentioned that it was very, super, extremely cold. 

She rubbed her cold fingertips together. This was a familiar hand. 

(This can’t be……me?) 

Although her dress was different, these fingers were definitely her own. The face reflected on the glass window was undoubtedly that of Tokisaki Kurumi. 

In other words, this is?? 

(A memory that I lost……?) 

Thinking it over calmly, this was impossible. Considering the principle behind the Compile, it was easy to understand why she deemed this conclusion to be illogical. 

However, Kurumi even refused to look back at this logic. 

Because this dream was so pleasant??pleasant enough to silence everything else. 

(??Oh?) 

Her gaze was automatically directed towards the bed. Over there she could see a boy asleep peacefully with a gentle look on his face. Why was she wearing a Santa Claus costume in the middle of the freezing winter? All of these little questions were swept away in an instant. 

Laying on the bed, her frozen feet and hands grew warmer. 

The boy’s face was right in front of her eyes. 

She wanted to scream, to yell in order to wake him up and hug him. But she couldn’t. 

To the bitter end, this was just a memory, an incident that had already happened in another world. 

So there was no choice but to see how this scene plays out. She couldn’t reach out or even move her fingertips. 

Ah, but?? 

“Kuru……mi……” 

He had called out her name. That fact alone was enough to get drunk with happiness. 

“……I’ll……come……save……you……” 

And learned that he wanted to help her. 

A maddening passion. A maddening awakening of love. 

That’s why looking away from this would have been a fatal mistake?? 

 

Opening her eyes, she returned to dangerous land again. However, Kurumi only thought about one thing. A desire to experience that dream and scene again. Even if she drowned in that dream and could never wake up again, she would still feel fulfilled. 

However, she woke up. So she wanted to immerse herself in that dream again. 

To this end, she needed to survive. For that reason, the Jabberwocky obstructing in front of her looked unsightly. 

“……Ah, I don’t want to die.” 

So let’s kill??Kurumi thought. 

She needed to cling onto this life to step into the First Region Keter and meet that unknown person once again! 

“Kihihihi. Anyway, you are in the way, so??drop dead!” 

Kurumi let out a shrill piercing scream as she evaded the approaching fist. She fired indiscriminately from <Zafkiel>’s long rifle and short pistol just like machine gunfire. 

A terrifying maelstrom of gunfire, the torrential downpour of bullets tore apart what was left of the Jabberwocky’s body. 

Whether a giant or white dragon, its shortcomings were revealed at this time. Although the repeated attempts at regeneration help keep its body intact, it was too late to fully regenerate the injured parts that were completely hollowed out. 

Please die. / A bullet pierced through the Jabberwocky’s feet. 

Please die with this bullet. / She kicked away her fallen apart jaw. 

Do so immediately without disturbing my dream. /A bullet struck through the eyes. 

“Kurumi-san! Kurumi-sa……” 

Hibiki’s group rushed over to see the excessively gruesome sight. 

The Jabberwocky broke apart into the original Empties composing it, but there were no signs of life. The life form was a collective, so the demise of the Jabberwocky meant the death of its cells. 

A mountain of corpses, dead bodies everywhere and a blood-stained queen standing among them. 

It looked both beautiful and terrifying. 

“……Oh, Hibiki-san.” 

However, the blood quickly disappeared. In the Neighboring World, even blood wasn’t a material substance of note. Looking back, she had already changed back to the appearance of the usual Kurumi. 

“Um……are you okay?” 

“What do you mean?” 

As Kurumi slanted her neck to express her doubts, Hibiki re-grouped her thoughts before speaking. 

“Well, the Jabberwocky is……” 

“She’s dead. I told her to die.” 

“……Right……” 

“As one would expect!” 

Carte nodded with a look of admiration. She didn’t have a deep relationship with Kurumi, so she likely didn’t notice her change. 

But Hibiki could tell. She had probably seen the memory of that person again. 

So at the peak of happiness, she had begun to run once more. And once she started running, she wouldn’t come back again. 

“Kurumi-san, please don’t run away and leave me again!” 

Hibiki spoke out with as much of a cheerful voice as possible. It was difficult to tell if Kurumi understood the meaning behind those words, but her expression looked somewhat gloomy. 

“……Yes, of course.” 

Only then did Kurumi become self-aware. 

It seemed that she had single-handedly defeated the Jabberwocky. 

She took a deep breath to regain her calm train of thought. Yes, now was the perfect opportunity. 

“……The White Queen isn’t present in the Third Region Binah right now. There’s no doubt about it. So we can’t miss this golden opportunity. I am the type to thoroughly pay back for the humiliation that I have received.” 

Fifteen Minutes Remaining 



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