Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 11 - Chapter 3

Sanae’s Crisis

Tuesday, March 16th

Today’s game was held three times, with dinner in between. After all three rounds, Yurika and Theia were in the lead with Koutarou and Kiriha behind them, and Sanae in last place.

With those results, Kiriha lost her lead and Theia took first place on the points scoreboard. Koutarou held his position as third, and Yurika barely managed to pull ahead to take fourth place. Granted, the average of Koutarou and Sanae’s point total still exceeded Yurika’s. Sanae was only in last place now because she’d given some of her points to Koutarou. Assuming he would eventually return them, Yurika was still effectively in last place.

“Oh, ooh! I’m finally no longer in last place!”

“Good for you, Yurika.”

Sanae, the one that had fallen to last place instead, congratulated Yurika. And nobody thought anything of it. That in and of itself was quite indicative of the current state of affairs in room 106. Everyone felt as though things were strange, but certainly not in a bad way.

“Thank you very much, Sanae-chaaan!”

Yurika grabbed Sanae’s hands and shook them up and down enthusiastically. Yurika was originally deathly afraid of ghosts, but you would never know it now. She seemed to have no problem touching Sanae, and the two of them got along well.

“Koutarou, now I’m in last place!”

After praising Yurika, Sanae flew towards Koutarou and leaned in expectantly.

“So why don’t you cheer me up?”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

Koutarou patted Sanae’s head and comforted her. When he did, Sanae smiled happily. Everyone who saw it suspected that she had intentionally gotten last place just for this moment.

“You have to pour more love into it.”

“Oh, my always adorable Lady Sanae, I sympathize with your feelings. Please allow me, Koutarou, to do anything in my power to cheer you up, my lady.”

Since this was a common occurrence, Koutarou was used to it. He continued patting Sanae’s head as he told her what she wanted to hear. Since Sanae was a ghost, she liked coming into contact with people’s auras. Koutarou patting her on the head was just one way to do that, but he knew it was one of her favorites.

“Mm, very good.” Satisfied with her consolation from Koutarou, Sanae imitated Theia and gave him a satisfied nod.

“Your praise is wasted on me, my lady.”

“Heehee.”

Still smiling, Sanae moved around to Koutarou’s back. Since he had homework to do, he couldn’t just keep patting her head forever. So until he was done with his homework, she would just cling to him instead.

“Okay, let’s study, Koutarou.”

“Yeah. Yurika, it’s time for homework. That’s enough manga for now.”

“Whaaat?! Can’t I just read a little more?!”

“You’ve never settled for ‘a little.’”

“He knows your game, Yurika.”

“Why can’t I just start once you’ve finished all of your homework, Satomi-san?”

“Ah, so that’s it. You’re planning on copying my work, you brat!”

“When I copy your homework, there are errors here and there and that makes it more believable!”

“She’s hopeless...”

Sanae laughed as she wrapped her arms snugly around Koutarou’s neck.

It wouldn’t be too bad if things were always like this...

At some point, the desperate feelings of the little girl who wanted nothing more than to see her parents had started to change. She still wanted to see her parents, but now she was happy where she was waiting for them, too. She loved her life. And what she loved most of all was the warmth in her arms right now. As long as she could feel that warmth, she could endure the loneliness of not being able to see her parents.

But... I can’t become a real part of his family...

Sanae focused on what she was holding in her right hand—a charm with the words “family safety” embroidered on it. That charm was protecting her, and it was proof that Koutarou treasured her. But Sanae didn’t want things to stay that way. Just like the charm protected her, she wanted to protect Koutarou in return. Yet, sadly for her, only a flesh and blood human could do that. “Family safety” was a charm meant to protect someone’s family. And as a ghost, Sanae could never really become part of Koutarou’s family. She would never be able to have children, either. So even though she was happy where she was, she was also stuck.

The only way for a ghost like Sanae to become a real part of Koutarou’s family would be to enter samsara and be reborn. But Sanae didn’t really want that either. She didn’t want to leave Koutarou’s side. She wanted to forever embrace his warmth, and be embraced by it. It wasn’t like she could just go back to being alive, but the path ahead was blocked off for her too. It was like she was at a perpetual dead end, but something would happen shortly to turn that on its head.

“Kyah!”

With a jarring sound similar to a lightbulb shorting out, Sanae’s arms passed through Koutarou’s body. Though Sanae didn’t have a material body to begin with, if she focused, she could grab on to a person’s aura. That’s how she normally held on to Koutarou, and it’s what she’d been doing until now, but her arms had suddenly passed right through him without explanation.

“Wh-What is going on?!”

When the surprised Sanae looked down at her arms, she saw that their distinct shape now appeared blurry, almost like they were liquid and dripping. They were flickering too, sometimes disappearing altogether. Even scarier, the phenomenon wasn’t limited to just her arms. It was happening to her entire body.

“What’s wrong?!”

Koutarou had a bad feeling when he heard Sanae scream and immediately turned around to see what was wrong. When he did, he could see that Sanae’s figure was starting to fade.

“Koutarou!”

“What is it?!”

Koutarou had never seen Sanae like this. While she could make herself invisible, it didn’t happen in stages like this. She also had no reason to go invisible right now.

“What’s going on?!”

Koutarou was surprised by Sanae’s strange appearance and wanted an explanation, but Sanae could only shake her head in response.

“I don’t know either! What is this? This has never happened before!”

This was a first for her too, and she was overcome with a strong sense of fear at the sight of it. She didn’t understand what was happening to her. And though she was terrified, she simply stood there blankly staring at her own body.

“Sanae-chan?!”

“Ruth, what is happening to Sanae?!”

“I don’t know, Your Highness! The circumstances regarding Sanae-sama’s body are outside of our knowledge base!”

Shizuka, Theia, and Ruth were equally surprised. They didn’t understand much about ghosts. They could tell that something was wrong, but they were at a loss as to how to help.

“Just what is— That’s right!”

Koutarou had an idea. Even if something had happened to Sanae, the spiritual circuity she’d forged in him should still be working. With that thought, he activated his spirit sight to try and figure out what was going on with Sanae.

“What is this?!”

However, seeing her that way only shocked him more. Whenever he’d looked at her with his spirit sight before, Sanae’s body was always aglow with a dazzling light. But not now. Her light was weak, about half as bright as it usually was.

Sanae ordinarily appeared to be glowing because a portion of her vast spiritual energy leaked outside of her body. It was what was called an aureola in Buddhism, or something like an angel’s halo in Christianity. That glow diminishing was a sign that the spiritual energy that made up Sanae’s body had diminished, and it wasn’t by a small amount. That much was obvious just by looking at her weak glow now.

And it wasn’t just that her light was dim; it was also flickering like it could hardly maintain itself. Something about Sanae’s body had grown unstable, and it only appeared to be getting worse. Koutarou could tell that much, but that was it. He didn’t know what to do for her.

“Koutarou, what’s her situation?!”

Only Kiriha would be able to help.

“Sanae’s spiritual energy has been cut in half! And it’s strangely unstable!”

“Karama, Korama!”

After hearing what Koutarou said, Kiriha quickly called for her two haniwas.

“Yes! Ho!”

“Sanae-chan, we’ll save you right away! Ho!”

The two haniwas were usually lurking nearby in stealth mode. By the time they were visible to Koutarou and the others, they were already floating in the air in front of Sanae.

“Karama, use the spiritual energy stabilizer! Expand the area! Activate Class II! Prioritize stabilizing control!”

“Understood! Activating spiritual energy stabilizer! Operating mode Class II! Expanding area! Nee-san, a warning, ho! With my spiritual energy batteries, I can only operate Class II for 238 seconds, ho!”

“I know! Korama!”

“Yes, ho!”

“Connect your spiritual energy battery to Karama! Send all the energy apart from what you need for basic operation to Karama!”

“Should the output pattern be emulated after Sanae-chan’s aura? Ho!”

“Yes, perform the analysis!”

“Understood, ho!”

Kiriha ordered her haniwas to help. She was planning on using Karama to stabilize Sanae’s spiritual energy while using Korama’s battery to replenish Sanae’s spiritual energy. Simply explained, it was like patching up a hole in a balloon and reinflating it.

All that’s left is...!

Without waiting for her haniwas to get started, Kiriha moved on to the next step. She pulled a cellphone from her pocket and went to make a call. But before she could even dial the number, her phone was already vibrating. The person she was going to call had contacted her first.

“Kiriha speaking!”

Kiriha quickly pressed the answer button and held the cellphone up to her ear.

“Nee-san! Kiriha-neesan! It’s me, Hachi!”

The voice coming from the other end of the line was one of the ghost hunters that had kidnapped Sanae at the beach last summer. After Koutarou and the others had gotten Sanae back, Kiriha had offered to buy information about Sanae off of them, and they were now essentially working as her subordinates.

“I’m aware of the abnormality! What information do you have?!”

“Bad news! That girl, Sanae-chan, is dying!”

“What about the spiritual energy stabilization device?!”

“Aniki just left to set it up!”

“I’ll leave that to you then, but stay on the line!”

“Roger that!”

Learning what she needed to know, Kiriha’s already serious expression turned even more severe.

I can only pray we make it in time...

Kiriha had given the ghost hunters a specialized device for this kind of situation, and if they activated it properly, Sanae should temporarily be able to recover. The question was if she could buy enough time with her haniwas for them to be able to set it up.

“Nee-san, the spiritual energy stabilizer’s output is now stable, ho! Operation can continue for another 230 seconds! Continuing the countdown, ho!”

As Karama said that, Sanae’s body regained its distinct form. The yellow light emitted from the haniwas appeared to be stabilizing her.

“I have connected the battery to Sanae-chan’s aura through Karama’s spiritual energy stabilizer, ho! The converter is currently stable, so we should be fine for a while now, ho!”

The light Koutarou could see around Sanae grew a little bit brighter. It was still weaker than normal, but it was shining with a constant brightness and no longer appeared to be unstable. Sanae had recovered a bit, but Kiriha’s expression was still grave.

“Only 230 seconds... We might not make it in time...”

Kiriha calculated in her head the time it would take the ghost hunters to activate the device. Even with Korama and Karama’s help, it still seemed like they would be about half a minute short. Sanae would just have to hold on in her unstable form during that time, and that was a dangerous gamble that Kiriha would rather not have to make.

“Kiriha-san, just what is going on?!”

Based on everything that Kiriha had done, Koutarou figured that she had some kind of information, and he wanted her to explain the situation. Knowing that Sanae was in danger, he wasn’t willing to just take a backseat in all this.

“Sanae’s spiritual energy supply has decreased, and she is starting to disappear.”

Kiriha bit her lip. She had made preparations to keep this exact thing from happening, but the situation had deteriorated far faster than she had imagined.

“Disappear?!”

Koutarou’s worst fear turned out to be exactly what was happening. His face twisted with emotion.

“What do you mean by disappear?! As in die?!”

Hearing that she was disappearing, Sanae ran up to Kiriha with a terrified expression. After the scare she’d just had, what Kiriha said sounded all too believable. Sanae knew she was in danger, but all she could do was tremble in fear in the face of it.

“Sadly, that’s precisely what it means. There is insufficient spiritual energy to stabilize your body. If left like this, you will dissolve and assimilate with nature’s spiritual energy.”

Ghosts were beings that used a mystical power to gather spiritual energy to a single point. Without that power, they would merely become an unbound mass of spiritual energy and would eventually disperse much the way air does out of a deflated balloon. It would diffuse into the surrounding air until it became indistinguishable.

“No, I don’t want to disappear!”

Now realizing the crisis she was in, Sanae was seized with an even greater fear than before. Her hair was disheveled and tears filled her eyes.

“Sanae-chan, sit still, ho!”

“If you move or if let your emotions run wild, you’ll use up more spiritual energy, ho!”

Since they were what was keeping Sanae stable, the haniwas had to follow closely behind Sanae as she moved around.

“How can I just sit still after hearing that I’m going to disappear?! What do I do, Koutarou?!”

Scared, Sanae leaped at Koutarou. Fortunately, since the haniwas were stabilizing her body, he was able to catch her.

Sanae...

Sanae was trembling in Koutarou’s arms. To try and stop it, he embraced her tightly.

“Kiriha-san, isn’t there anything we can do?! She can’t just suddenly disappear!”

Sanae’s crisis wasn’t Kiriha’s fault. Koutarou knew that. But she was the only one he could turn to for answers. He was desperate to help Sanae.

“I have people on it already. All we can do is hope for the best.”

Kiriha showed Koutarou her cellphone. Seeing she was on the line with someone, he realized she’d already set something in motion.

“But there might not be enough time. I can’t say with 100 percent certainty that it will save her.”

“Koutarou!”

Hearing Kiriha’s words, Sanae squeezed her arms around Koutarou.

No, I don’t want to separate from Koutarou! Anything but that!

Sanae’s internal screaming channeled itself as force in her arms, and she unwittingly held on to Koutarou even tighter.

It’s so warm here! And I’m happy here! So, so...!

She clenched her right fist harder than anything. Inside of it was a charm embroidered with the words “family safety.”

“Hold me, Koutarou! So I won’t disappear!”

That was Sanae’s only wish right now. To be together with Koutarou. In the year since they’d met, Koutarou had become irreplaceable to her.

Even though Sanae had once tried to chase Koutarou out of the apartment, she could no longer imagine life without him. She always wanted to wake up next to his peacefully sleeping face. Without him, she didn’t know who she would say good morning to.

“You said not enough time, Kiriha. How much time are we talking here?”

Koutarou poured more strength into his arms and held Sanae tightly in return. It may have just been the tension of the situation, but he definitely didn’t want to lose Sanae either. But whatever the reason, he was answering Sanae’s wish. And it wasn’t just pure coincidence, either. As their feelings overlapped in that moment, it was only inevitable.

Koutarou... Ko... tarou...

Sanae entrusted herself to Koutarou. If she was going to disappear, she would rather melt into Koutarou and become one with him.

“One or two minutes... No, it shouldn’t take two minutes.”

“Less than two minutes...”

Hearing that, Koutarou lightly clenched his right hand and brought it up to his face.

“Master...”

Just by seeing that movement, Ruth could tell what Koutarou was about to do. He was going to use the bracelet on his right wrist to call forth Signaltin in order to buy enough time for Sanae.

I have to get Her Highness out of here...

Koutarou didn’t want Theia to know about Signaltin. But with Sanae in danger, he wouldn’t hesitate to bring it out. The best compromise then seemed to be Ruth taking Theia somewhere else to avoid the conflict altogether.

“Your Highness, let us do what we can as well.”

“Ruth?”

“Let us return to Blue Knight and retrieve our space-time stabilization devices.”

Not only did Ruth want to get Theia away for Koutarou’s sake, she also wanted to make preparations in case Signaltin didn’t work. Ruth was worried for Sanae too.

“Very well!”

Theia quickly agreed. Sanae was a precious friend to her as well. Moreover, she was also a rival competing for rulership over room 106, so Theia wanted to be able to defeat her fair and square. She could take no pride in a victory gained by the untimely demise of one of her rivals.

“Let us hurry back to Blue Knight then!”

Theia got up and made for the far wall of the inner room so she could use the teleportation device that had been set up there.

“Yes, Your Highness!”

Ruth nodded and tossed a knowing glance Koutarou’s way.

I will leave the rest to you, Master...

Seeing Koutarou respond with a nod of his own, Ruth chased after Theia. But someone stopped them before they could use the gate back to their ship.

“Please wait!”

When that voice rang out in room 106, everyone’s eyes opened wide. It was Yurika, who had been silently watching what was unfolding until now.

“What is the meaning of this, Yurika? We are in a hurry!”

Theia was angry that she’d been held up. With literally only minutes to spare, Theia wanted to return to Blue Knight quickly as possible.

“I’ll hear what you have to say later!”

“Ah, p-please wait! Listen to—”

“I don’t have the time for that!”

Theia forcefully rejected Yurika and turned back toward the teleportation device. But then Koutarou called for her too.

“Wait, Tulip!”

“P-Pleb?!”

Because Koutarou had called her Tulip, Theia instinctively turned around as she stood in the threshold of the gate to Blue Knight.

“Believe in her!” Koutarou shouted to Theia with determination.

“Ah, okay...”

Those few words were enough to stop Theia. There had to be a reason he’d called her Tulip, and that alone stopped her in her tracks. She could feel how serious Koutarou was.

“So what is it, Yurika?! Out with it!”

Koutarou knew he could believe in Yurika right now. She had the same look in her eyes as when Maki had gone missing on the snowy mountain.

“Satomi-san...”

Yurika was surprised. Normally Koutarou never believed her and was quick to write her off. She could hardly believe he’d taken her side like that.

But this...

Yurika had seen that earnest look in Koutarou’s eyes once before. It was just like when Maki had vanished during their ski trip. It was the same look he’d given her when he offered to help Yurika find her.

I don’t really understand why, but Satomi-san believes in me right now!

Yurika didn’t realize that she was the one who’d changed. She wasn’t aware of her own growth. But even then, she could clearly feel that Koutarou believed in her. And that gave her faith and confidence in herself. Someone believed in her, and that feeling awakened the true courage sleeping within Yurika.

“Magic! I can use magic to buy the two minutes we need!” she declared bravely.

No one present in that moment doubted for even a second that Yurika was a real magical girl.

In a way, Yurika was just suggesting a different approach to what Kiriha was already doing. She would try and stabilize Sanae while supplying her with additional energy. The only difference was that she would be doing it magically.

“What can we do to help, Yurika?!”

“Please stand in a circle around Sanae-chan!”

Dressed in her magical girl outfit, Yurika held out her large staff and pointed its tip at Sanae. She was currently holding Encyclopedia. The staff she ordinarily used, Angel Halo, had fused with her clothes just like it had during her battle against Maki. It could be seen in a series of ornaments now adorning her outfit, including the wings on her back.

“I will then transfer everyone’s spiritual energy to Sanae-chan.”

“Is something like that possible?!”

“I’ve never tried it, but it should be!”

Yurika’s idea was to activate her magic right when the haniwas ran out of power in order to maintain Sanae’s energy for the maximum amount of time. And since Sanae needed energy, Yurika was planning on borrowing it from the other six people in the room. She would use Encyclopedia to stabilize Sanae while casting a spell to facilitate the energy transfer. It was a bold plan made possible because Yurika could use two spells at once with the power of Encyclopedia.

But because it was such a bold plan, it required a complex spell and a great deal of control to make it work. It would take longer than normal to activate. Yurika had stopped Theia and Ruth because she knew she wouldn’t have enough time otherwise. It might have been possible without them, but it would have increased the strain on the remaining four by 50 percent. Since transferring spiritual energy was similar to the energy drain attack that vampires used, Yurika didn’t want to risk doing anything unnecessarily dangerous.

And even though Yurika was using such a serious spell, no one in the room thought anything of it. Since Encyclopedia saw everyday use in the apartment, they’d grown completely accustomed to the idea that Yurika could use magic. They all knew how good she’d gotten with wielding the staff, too. They’d sent her to drive away a stray cat once, and she’d used the staff to chase it off with supersonic waves without harming it.

But despite what it seemed like, Yurika hadn’t actually gotten better at using Encyclopedia. She had been capable of making full use of its power from the start, but she’d intentionally held back. Now that she was using her own powers more freely, it simply appeared that she’d grown stronger and more capable with magic. By carefully choosing which spells she cast in front of them and slowly using more serious magic, she could now use the full extent of her magical girl power in front of them under the guise of Encyclopedia.

A magical girl that was just supposed to be cosplaying was really using powerful spells. That unthinkable reality was unfolding in front of them. But even though she was allegedly just a cosplayer, everyone put their faith in Yurika and her magic. There was no longer any point in arguing about whether Yurika was a cosplayer or the real deal. Her courage and her magic were real, and that was enough for them.

“All right! Let’s start!”

“Yes! Precast Energy Converter—”

Yurika immediately begin incanting her spell. While listening to her voice, Koutarou whispered to Sanae. For the spell to work, she would have to be in the middle of the room surrounded by everyone else. She couldn’t just keep clinging to Koutarou.

“Sanae.”

“But...”

But the uneasy Sanae didn’t want to let him go. She clung to him and grasped at his clothes.

“Don’t worry. You can believe in Yurika right now.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I’d even bet my prized bat on it.”

“...Okay.”

Koutarou’s prized bat was one that had been used and signed by a legendary slugger known as “the god of batting.” Sanae knew how much Koutarou treasured it, so if he was willing to bet that, she decided she could trust in his judgement. She reluctantly let go of Koutarou and floated to the center of the room. Once she was in position, her six friends surrounded her.

“Okay, Yurika!”

“We’re counting on you, Yurika-sama!”

“Right!”

After Theia and Ruth called to her, Yurika nodded with an usually serious expression and continued her incantation.

The main spell is Transfer Soul Energy. On top of that, I need three modifiers on it: an invocation delay, a target expansion to cover six people, and a time extension to make it last two minutes. And while I adjust the energy of six people through the Energy Converter spell to match Sanae-chan’s energy, I have to use the staff’s magic to keep her stable. Even if I prolong the casting time to reduce the mana used, I only have one shot... Can I really do this?

As Yurika went through the procedure in her head, she realized how difficult of a job she had. Doubt reared its ugly head and she grew nervous.

“Don’t be scared! You can do it!”

Seeing the anxiety manifest in Yurika’s face, Koutarou encouraged her.

“Y-Yes!”

When he did, her expression returned to the sharp and serious one from before. Seeing the two of them interact like that, Shizuka was astonished.

As expected of Satomi-kun... For better or worse, he understands Yurika-chan really well.

Koutarou had noticed a change in Yurika that no one else had. And with just a few words, she was back to normal. The powerful mutual trust seen between them now made their day to day arguing all seem like some kind of a joke.

Really, it meant that their relationship was much deeper than it appeared to be on the surface. Beneath it all, they trusted each other more than anything. And seeing that in action for herself, Shizuka once again felt that only Koutarou would suffice as Yurika’s guardian.

“Say, Satomi-kun...”

She wanted to ask him about it.

“What is it, Landlord-san?”

“...Actually I’ll ask you later. Now’s not a good time.”

In the end, she decided to hold off. Even a gossip-loving girl like Shizuka knew that there was something far more important at hand. She couldn’t bring herself to ask Koutarou if he actually loved Yurika while Sanae’s life was hanging in the balance.

“Sure...”

Koutarou found Shizuka’s behavior odd, but he quickly put it out of his mind. Like she said herself, now wasn’t the time for it.

“Karama and Korama have almost reached their limit! Only fifteen seconds left!”

“Please start, Yurika!”

“Okay!”

After nodding at Koutarou, Yurika readjusted her grip on her staff one last time and loudly spoke the words to activate the spell.

“Encyclopedia! Release Invocation Delay! Recall Precast Energy Converter!”

Yurika cast three spells in rapid succession. The first was using Encyclopedia, which had the ability to read its user’s mind and activate magic on its own. Yurika had entrusted the staff with the easiest of the three spells she needed: the one to stabilize Sanae’s body. Based on the type of spell, the staff emitted a blue light as it was cast. That light enveloped Sanae and healed her body in place of Karama and Korama.

The next spell she activated was one intended to steal Koutarou and the others’ spiritual energy and forward it to Sanae. Since it had been delayed in order to match the timing, it activated right when Encyclopedia’s spell kicked in. A purple light reached out from Yurika and snaked its way in tendrils over to all six of them. It hit them each with a strong impact and they could feel their strength leaving them. It came with a stabbing pain all over their bodies that made it hard to breathe.

“Ugh...!”

“Kyah!”

“S-So this... is the spell that steals spiritual energy...”

It felt something like being struck with a whip while running a marathon after being pushed to their very limits. Their bodies felt heavy, and just standing up was painful. Regardless of how much they gasped for air, they couldn’t shake the sensation that they were slowly suffocating. Being drained of spiritual energy was the same as directly draining the life force from someone. The acute pain and fatigue they were feeling were signs their lives were in danger.

No wonder... she wanted Theia and Ruth-san to stay...

Without them, the strain would have been increased on everyone else. They likely wouldn’t still be standing, and there was no telling what kind of condition they’d be in after enduring that for two full minutes. Koutarou struggled to keep his heavy body upright as he realized why Yurika had acted the way she did.

“Hnnngh...! Can’t... lose consciousness!”

But the one in the most pain of all was Yurika. Since she prioritized reducing the strain on everyone else, she was draining spiritual energy from herself as well. Sanae required so much spiritual energy that it was unclear what kind of damage this much drain would do even with all six of them helping out. Yurika knew she had to do her part too. She couldn’t just let the others take the brunt of it. So she steeled herself to endure the pain while controlling her third spell.

Yurika’s third spell gathered and merged the spiritual energy taken by the second spell. Spiritual energy had different wavelengths depending on the individual, and if those wavelengths didn’t match Sanae’s, the energy would be of no use to her. So for her third spell, Yurika had to synchronize the wavelengths of six different people at the same time.

It was a lower difficulty spell than the energy drain, but because she had to make minute adjustments to six different spiritual wavelengths while her own spiritual energy was being drained, it was effectively the most difficult spell of them all.

“Yurika, fight! Yu...rika... fi...ght!”

Yurika cheered herself on while she did her best to concentrate on controlling the spell. If her focus wavered for even a moment, the wavelengths could desynch and disperse before they even made it to Sanae.

“You can do it, Yurika... You’re our only hope right now...”

Koutarou was frustrated that all he could do was pray. He’d wanted to help Yurika by using Signaltin, but he couldn’t control its mana as well as Alaia could. He had no confidence he would actually be of any help with something like this that required precise control.

He could completely leave it up to the sword like he had when dealing with Kii’s nightmare or healing Maki’s injury, but he didn’t know if that would work now. With Sanae’s life on the line, he didn’t want to take any risks, but he was still willing to use it as a last resort. So until it came to that, there was nothing Koutarou could do apart from praying he wouldn’t need to go that far.

“I... will definitely... save... Sanae-chan...!”

Yurika desperately focused her mind to maintain her magic as she was racked with pain. Ten seconds passed, then twenty, thirty... It was the kind of time they could easily spend laughing with each other over nothing, but the seconds seemed to crawl by now. It was the longest two minutes of Yurika’s life.

“I will become... an amazing magical girl... like Nana-san...!”

But Yurika didn’t back down. Despite the intense pain, she kept up her spell with an iron will.

One year ago, a task like this would have been impossible for Yurika. After being separated from Nana, Yurika had her hands full just escaping from the assassins of Darkness Rainbow. Her potential for magic aside, Yurika’s personality was wholly unsuited for the intense lifestyle of a magical girl.

Yet Yurika had grown immensely in the year since she’d started living in room 106. She butted heads with Koutarou and the other invaders, and their constantly chaotic lives had been good training for her. But most importantly, Yurika was no longer alone.

She wanted to graduate from Kisshouharukaze High School together with Koutarou. She wanted to see the finale of her favorite magical girl anime together with Sanae. She wanted to recover the corpses of Yurika, Yurika A, and Yurika B that Theia had left behind in a dungeon in one of her video games. She still hadn’t tasted all of Kiriha’s cooking. She was also still in the middle of reading some manga that she’d borrowed from Shizuka. And she wanted to do something to help Harumi win over the boy she loved.

“I am... the princess... of love... and courage...!”

Yurika now had lots of things she wanted to do and many people she cared about. So even in a terrible situation like this, she would do her best for their sake. Over the past year, she’d learned that kind of love and hope, and she’d harnessed the courage to not run away when things got hard.

“Yurika... you...”

Sanae’s opinion of Yurika was completely transforming as she watched her work. The same was probably true for everyone else in the room. Nobody had expected her to work that hard. No one except for Koutarou, who had believed in her from the start.

“That’s right... You can do it... You always pull through!”

There was less than a minute to go now. Yurika was having a hard time breathing, but Koutarou was convinced that she could do it. And she likely would have been able to if circumstances hadn’t conspired against her.

There was an unexpected screech and a loud crash from outside. There was a traffic accident not far from Corona House. A car had been unable to fully make it around a turn and crashed into a wall, but fortunately nobody had been harmed.

“...Ah?!”

But it was enough to startle Yurika out of her intense concentration. The sound had surprised her, but she also couldn’t help being worried that someone might have been injured.

If she hadn’t been such a caring soul and had only been shaken up by the loud, sudden noise, she probably would have been able to manage. She was much braver than she used to be. But she was more sympathetic than anything, and her worry got the better of her. In other words, her qualities as a magical girl would be her downfall this time.

“Oh no!”

As her focus wavered, the six spiritual energies she was synchronizing into a single wavelength began returning to their usual patterns. If spiritual energies of two different wavelengths collided, they would cancel each other out and lose most of their power. And with six of them crashing into each other like that, the results were disastrous. Yurika tried to regain control, but what she ended up with was less than a third of the original spiritual energy.

“A-Again?!”

Sanae’s body began fading. Since Encyclopedia was still stabilizing her body, she didn’t lose her form. Instead, she grew transparent as she grew weaker. She was now consuming more spiritual energy than Yurika could supply.

What do I do?!

Yurika desperately racked her brain trying to figure out a way to recover from the current situation. Even after recovering the spell, it would take time to readjust the six spiritual energies so Sanae could use them. That said, the little energy she had a hold of now wasn’t enough to sustain Sanae. If she could somehow double it, she was sure she could make it through the two minutes before Sanae disappeared. There was only one way she could think of to make that happen, but it would be risky.

“Satomi-san, this is our only hope! Lend me your power!”

And in a situation like this, as expected, Yurika ended up relying on Koutarou. She firmly held her staff in both hands and pointed it at him.

“Yurika?! Gaaaaaaaah!”

The strain on Koutarou suddenly began increasing rapidly. The shock and pain assaulting him doubled proportionally to the amount of spiritual energy now being drained from him.

“I’m sorry... Satomi-san... there’s... no other way!”

The same was true for Yurika. While enduring twice the pain, she desperately tried to keep Sanae alive. Reunifying six different wavelengths right away would be difficult, so Yurika had instead decided to focus on Koutarou’s since his was very close to Sanae’s, and her own since it was easier to control. Of course, that dramatically increased the strain on the two of them, but it was a quick way to get their energy output back up. It was an incredibly dangerous gamble, and Yurika was betting everything on it.

“Yurika! Koutarou!”

Sanae could only watch as two people she loved suffered for her sake. Unable to bear it any longer, she closed her eyes and prayed that time would pass by as quickly as possible so that no one would get hurt.

“I’m sorry... Hnnngh...”

Yurika felt bad for doing something like this to Koutarou without his permission, and for not being able to properly apologize. But it was all she could to do right now to stay conscious and maintain her spell. Sweat poured down her forehead and her throat was as dry as a desert. Unable to stand up any longer, she slumped down to the floor. She was already well past her limit. She was determined to keep up her spell, but she was expecting to pass out at any moment.

“...D-Don’t worry, Yurika! You’re... right!”

Koutarou raised his voice in an attempt to encourage Yurika.

“You’re someone... who always pulls through! You save people! Who cares... what you’re like normally?! You’re... You’re a splendid magical girl!”

With Yurika and Koutarou’s spiritual wavelengths synchronized into one, their souls were partly connected. And without the other four in the mix, she could clearly sense Koutarou’s feelings.

Satomi-san... really does believe in me...

Koutarou’s words weren’t just reaching Yurika’s ears. His emotions were being projected directly into her soul. He trusted her. He believed in her, and in a future where he, Yurika, and Sanae would all be able to play around without worry again. In his imagined future, Yurika was still clumsy and often failed. But right now, Yurika wished for days like that more than anything too. And that wish turned into power.

“Haaaaaaaaaaah!”

As she let out a determined shout, Yurika’s mana exponentially grew. It flared up so much that even people without any talent for magic could see it glowing around her. If Yurika had been fighting someone in that state, she surely would have been able to take out her opponent no matter how strong they were. That was just how terrific the power that Yurika had mustered really was.

Just a few seconds before the full two minutes had passed, Kiriha heard a voice coming from the other end of the phone.

“Nee-san! I got a report from Aniki! The device has been set up!”

“Well done!”

The normally stoic Kiriha clenched her fist in joy.

“How is she?!”

Not a moment later, Sanae’s faded body recovered its light and color. Her appearance was now as vivid as normal without any hint of what had been wrong.

“Yurika, that’s enough! We made it!”

Seeing Kiriha’s behavior and Sanae’s appearance, Koutarou realized that the plan had succeeded. He called out to Yurika, who was still pointing her magical staff at Sanae.

“...Ahh...”

Hearing that they’d made it, all of the tension left Yurika’s body. All the spells she had cast were released, and she collapsed on the spot. She’d used every ounce of strength she had, and didn’t even have the energy to right herself. And so she went crashing into the floor face first.

“Yurika!”

Seeing that, Koutarou forgot his own exhaustion and rushed over to her.

“Keep it together, Yurika!”

“Yurika-sama!”

“Yurika-chan!”

Theia, Ruth, and Shizuka followed suit. Kiriha was still on the phone, but she watched over Yurika with a worried look.

“Koutarou, how’s Yurika? Is she okay?!”

But the one worried most of all for her was Sanae. They’d been getting along especially well lately, and she’d just risked her life to save her. Sanae was naturally worried about such a good friend.

“Hang on...”

Koutarou checked Yurika over. He checked her breathing, her pulse, her complexion, and lastly her spiritual energy. Then, to Sanae’s relief, he smiled and nodded.

“She’s fine. She hit her head, but she’ll be fine. She’s just unconscious.”

“Thank god...”

Yurika had fallen down and hit her head, which wasn’t all that uncommon. Normally everyone would simply be dumbfounded at her lack of coordination, but this time was different. They were all concerned, and relieved to hear she was okay.

“Seriously, to think she’d face plant at the very end... Just what you would expect from Yurika.”

“It’s much more like the Yurika-sama we know, certainly. But what splendid work...”

“I just hope it doesn’t leave a mark on her face...”

All the girls smiled and spoke fondly of what Yurika had managed to do. They were impressed, and it showed in their affection for her. If she’d been awake to hear it, Yurika probably would have cried tears of joy.

“Thank you too, Koutarou.”

“You better thank Yurika once she wakes up too, okay?”

“I will.”

Sanae smiled as she stared at Yurika in Koutarou’s arms. Then she finally looked down at herself.

“Hahh... I wasn’t sure what would happen for a moment there...”

Sanae stared at her arms and then inspected her body and legs. Things appeared to be normal again, and there wasn’t even a sign anything had been wrong in the first place.

“Isn’t that great, Sanae?”

Koutarou finally relaxed some too. Since they had escaped the immediate crisis, he let out a deep sigh of relief.

“Yeah!”

Sanae cheerfully nodded and clung to Koutarou’s back like always. She then poked her face over his shoulder and stared at Yurika. Once she woke up, everything would indeed be back to normal. And so Sanae watched over the sleeping Yurika with a cheerful smile.

“Koutarou.”

Only Kiriha still appeared to be quite concerned. After putting away her cellphone, she put her hand on Koutarou’s shoulder.

“What’s the matter, Kiriha-san?”

“I’m sorry to say it, but this isn’t over yet. Sanae’s recovery is only temporary. The fundamental problem hasn’t been resolved.”

“What?!”

Koutarou’s face went pale when he heard that. He knew that Kiriha could be taken at her word, so to hear her say something like that sent a chill down his spine.

“You’re kidding?!”

And if Koutarou trusted her, Sanae inherently did too. She leaned forward from Koutarou’s back and looked at Kiriha.

“What do you— No, wait a minute...”

Koutarou was about to reflexively question her, but he realized something midsentence.

“Now that I think about it...”

Even at the start of the incident, Kiriha had responded swiftly and with a great deal of composure. Almost like she’d known it was going to happen. She’d arranged something with someone over the phone to save Sanae, but that too was odd. The person she’d been speaking to wasn’t anyone he knew.

“Kiriha-san, what do you know? And what kind of situation is Sanae in?”

That’s what Koutarou ended up asking Kiriha. Sanae wanted to know too, but she left the talking up to Koutarou. Her hold around his neck naturally grew stronger as she waited for an answer.

“Explaining will take a long time, but we don’t have that. It will be faster for you to see for yourself. Come with me, Satomi Koutarou.”

Quick to action, Kiriha immediately began heading for the front door. Her destination apparently wasn’t underground, but somewhere on the surface.

“Okay! Let’s go, Sanae!”

“Yeah!”

“We’re going too.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“I’ll be right behind you after I lock up!”

Koutarou and the others quickly followed after Kiriha. They still didn’t know what was going on, but they all wanted to help Sanae.

Someone was watching Koutarou and the others as they all dashed out of room 106.

“Oh, looks like things are getting more interesting now...”

It was a woman. One that couldn’t be seen. She was a ghost, but she didn’t have a body as clearly defined as Sanae’s. She had run out of spiritual energy and was on the verge of passing on or disappearing.

“Heh heh. With this, I might be able to get revenge on them... Hahaha!”

She bore a strong hatred for Koutarou and the others, and that powerful hate was what barely managed to keep her anchored to the world of the living.

“It’s their fault that I died... that I can’t wear my beautiful clothes... all of it...”

Her grudge really boiled down to unjustified resentment. She was one of the ghosts that had been hired by the ghost hunters to attack Sanae. After Koutarou’s counterattack, all of the other ghosts with her had passed on. She alone remained. Her hatred and her obsession with the land of the living were stronger than the power that had tried to make her pass on. But ever since then, she’d been waiting for her chance to get her revenge on Koutarou and the others. It was that steady diet of resentment that kept her tethered to this world, and seeing Koutarou and the others looking happy only fueled her appetite more.

“I may have failed before... heh heh... But I won’t this time... I’ll show them...”

This ghost had been the reason for the traffic accident that had broken Yurika’s concentration earlier. Her plan was to make Yurika’s spell fail, steal the gathered spiritual energy, and absorb Sanae. Yurika had prevented that all from happening, but that only stoked the fires of her hatred.

“Heh... If I wait just a bit longer, my chance will come... I only have to wait a little longer... Hahahaha!”

The temperature was slowly on the rise now that it was the latter half of March, but the air around this ghost of a woman was still freezing cold.

When she woke up, Yurika was on Koutarou’s back.

“...H-Huh...?”

Koutarou was carrying her as he ran down the sidewalk. It was dark outside, and the only light was coming from the weak streetlights overhead.

“U-Um...”

The last thing Yurika could remember was passing out in room 106. And now Koutarou was carrying her through the middle of the city at night. Naturally, she was quite confused.

“Where... Huh? Why is Satomi-san...?”

“Koutarou, looks like Yurika’s awake.”

Sanae, who was floating nearby, reported Yurika’s condition to Koutarou.

“I see. Thanks, Sanae.”

Koutarou glanced over his shoulder and saw Yurika’s drowsy eyes blinking as she looked around. Seeing her back to normal, Koutarou felt a little better.

“You awake, Yurika?”

“Y-Yes...”

Still not sure what was going on, Yurika nodded hesitantly. The next moment, her mind cleared up and she remembered something important.

“Th-That’s right, Sanae-chan! Where is Sanae-chan?!”

Yurika had blacked out right after Koutarou had told her that they’d made it, but she had no idea what had become of Sanae after that. Concerned, she wildly began looking around for Sanae.

“I’m right here.”

Sanae turned around and flew backwards in front of Koutarou so that Yurika could see her face. And when Yurika saw Sanae’s cheerful smile, her eyes went wide.

“Sanae-chan! You’re okay!”

“It’s all because of you. Thank you.”

“Th-Thank god... I wasn’t sure what was going to happen there for a minute...”

Relieved, the tension left Yurika’s body and she leaned on Koutarou. Filled with a sense of fulfillment after having accomplished the hard work she’d set out to do, she felt like leaning on him forever.

“Um, so, what are we doing now?”

Now that she’d had a chance to collect herself a bit, Yurika was curious what they were all doing outside. When she’d looked around for Sanae, she’d realized that everyone from room 106 was there with them. She could tell that they were headed somewhere, but she didn’t know where or why.

“We’re still not in the clear yet. We’re headed for the hospital.”

“The hospital? Why?”

“Because Kiriha-san said so.”

They were currently en route to the local hospital—the same one Koutarou had been taken to after he had hit his head at work last spring.

“Can Sanae-chan be treated at a hospital even though she’s a ghost?”

“Who knows? Kiriha said that it would take time to explain, so we don’t know anything either yet.”

Koutarou nodded in Kiriha’s direction. She was on the phone and trailing a bit behind everyone else. She’d been on the phone this entire time and hadn’t offered much in the way of an explanation.

“We’ll be there soon, so we’ll find out then.”

“I just hope it’s not something scary...”

“I don’t want that either.”

“Wouldn’t you be scared if a ghost or something appeared?”

“I’m a ghost too, you know.”

“You’re you, Sanae-chan. Real ghosts are way scarier.”

“...Weren’t you scared of me at first?”

Koutarou found it heartwarming that Yurika and Sanae had begun carefreely chatting away like normal, but his expression turned serious once again when he saw the front gate to the hospital in front of him.

“Satomi-kun, someone’s there.”

Shizuka, who was running next to Koutarou, pointed up ahead just in front of the entrance to the hospital property. She had good eyesight and hadn’t had any trouble spotting the two people standing there in the darkness.

“You’re right...”

From their silhouettes, Koutarou could tell that it was a tall, slim man and a short, fat one. They were facing Koutarou and the others as they approached, almost like they’d been waiting for them.

Could those be the guys Kiriha-san was talking to? Are they underground dwellers?

Koutarou’s mind was racing as he approached. When he got closer, the two men stepped out of the shadows. Finally seeing their faces, Koutarou let out a wild gasp of surprise.

“Wait, these guys again?!”

Koutarou had seen them before. They were the pair of ghost hunters they’d encountered at the beach last year.

“Satomi-kun, do you know them?”

“You know them too, Landlord-san! They’re the perverts from the beach!”

“Huh?! Seriously?!”

“What?! Y-You’re right! They’re those perverts!”

“Huh? There were perverts there?”

“They are the ones who kidnapped Sanae-sama.”

“Oh yeah, you were captured by the cosclub, so you couldn’t come...”

They were the ghost hunters that had captured Sanae and planned to sell her. In the process, they had been mistaken for perverts.

“Koutarou, do you think they’re up to something nefarious again?”

“Satomi-kun, do you think maybe they’re the ones who did something to Sanae-chan?”

“Those creeps! How dare they show up again?!”

After what they’d tried to do to Sanae last time, Koutarou and the others were still hostile towards the two offending ghost hunters. So much so that they were ready to finish them off for good this time.

“Ohoho, I’m afraid your luck’s run out now that we’ve crossed paths again.”

“Do it, Theia! Send those lolicons flying!”

“Your Highness, since it’s after dark, you should keep the power and noise levels low.”

“I know. Allow me to show you just how considerate I can be! Blue Knight, the anti-personnel laser!”

Out of all the weapons aboard her spaceship, Blue Knight, the anti-personnel laser was one of the weakest. And since lasers didn’t make much noise when fired, it was the perfect weapon for night combat. The hunters were mere seconds from being incinerated.

“Aaaaah, stop! Wait!”

“We haven’t done anything bad!”

Seeing the weapon Theia summoned at her side, the hunters began panicking. They finally realized that their lives were in danger.

“We haven’t laid a finger on Sanae-chan!”

“We just watch over her every night!”

“Yeah, they’re clearly stalkers after Sanae-chan.”

“Theia, shoot them.”

“Roger. Release the safety. I’ll leave the shooting to you.”

“As you wish, my princess.”

“Nooooo! Nee-san, d-did you not explain anything to them?!”

“Oh, right... Theia-dono, please hold your attack.”

Just before Theia’s laser cannon was about the fire, Kiriha called for her to halt.

“Why stop me?”

“They are not the enemy. They are subordinates that I have employed.”

“Employed?! Wh-What do you mean?!”

Koutarou was baffled by what Kiriha had said.

Why would she need to employ them? They’re the same guys who did all that awful stuff to Sanae!

Koutarou spoke in an accusatory tone, but that was because he knew what kind of a shady past these men had. If it hadn’t been Kiriha vouching for them, Koutarou probably wouldn’t have listened.

“I will explain everything, including that. We’ve reached our destination, after all.”

Kiriha calmed Koutarou as she walked over and looked up at one of the taller buildings in Kisshouharukaze City: the Kisshouharukaze municipal hospital. That was their destination.

Despite being the middle of the night, the hospital wasn’t completely empty. There were nurses on the night shift, doctors on duty, and guards patrolling the halls. Yet despite that, Koutarou and the others didn’t come across a single person as they entered the building. Kiriha had arranged a clear path for them while they were on the way. Thanks to her assistance, they were able to proceed ahead without being stopped.

“Well done, you two.”

“We’re fortunate this happened overnight. If it had been during the day, that hyper-intuitive mother would have been here, and things might have been a little problematic.”

“Here we are.”

The short, fat hunter who was leading the way stopped in front of a private patient room on the top floor of the hospital. They were in the wing where long-term patients were hospitalized. The short, fat hunter slid the door open. It was thick, and designed to stay sealed shut in order to prevent viruses or pathogens from getting in or out of the room. And after opening it, the fat hunter stood aside to let everyone in.

But nobody moved. They were all hesitant to enter a patient’s room. The darkness inside the room only made them even more hesitant.

“Everyone, please hurry on inside. We can’t allow ourselves to be seen by the other patients,” Kiriha said, urging the skeptical group inside.

“Y-Yeah.”

Koutarou was the first to react, and warily stepped forward. After taking the lead, the others followed him inside.

Since this is a patient room, someone is probably hospitalized in here...

Entering the room, Koutarou looked around for who might be inside. In the dim light of an emergency exit sign, he could see someone asleep on the bed at the far end of the room.

That must be them...

Though the reason was unclear, Kiriha had brought everyone here to meet this patient. Looking for an answer as to why, Koutarou slowly stepped closer to the bed. That was when Kiriha, who had entered the room last, flipped on the lights. The overhead lights revealed the face of the girl sleeping in the hospital bed.

“What?! How could this be?!”

“Whaaat?!”

“No way!”

Koutarou, Yurika who was resting on his back, and Sanae who was floating next to him were so taken aback by what they saw that they felt like their hearts were about to leap out of their chests. Yurika was so surprised that she had jumped off of Koutarou’s back and rushed over to the bed.

“What’s wrong?!”

“Ruth!”

“Yes!”

Seeing Koutarou’s reaction, Shizuka, Theia, and Ruth also approached the bed. The six of them crowded around it, and they were each rendered speechless as they looked at the face of the sleeping girl. It was a good ten seconds later before the silence was broken by Koutarou and Sanae.

“S-Sanae! This is Sanae!”

“It’s me! I’m sleeping here!”

To everyone’s surprise, the girl sleeping on the bed was indeed Sanae. The Sanae on the bed looked a couple of years older than the one they were used to, but there was no mistaking it. Everyone was convinced right away that it was her.

“That’s right. This is Sanae. I was just as surprised when I saw her here for the first time myself.”

Kiriha approached the rest of the group. Since she and the two ghost hunters already knew, they were able to remain calm even amidst all the surprise in the room.

“What is the meaning of this?! Why is Sanae here?! It’s not just a look-alike, right?!”

Koutarou had already used his spirit sight to inspect her aura and confirm for himself that it was Sanae. Both the color and pattern of her spiritual energy were identical to that of the ghost floating next to him. The only difference was her age and the strength of her aura. But that was all the more reason for Koutarou to doubt his own eyes. The Sanae he knew was no longer living.

“Allow me to explain. That is why I brought you all here.”

Kiriha calmly responded to the excited Koutarou, but there was a hint of sadness in her eyes. She already knew the cruel fate that awaited.

Kiriha had found Sanae in this hospital over half a year ago. After Koutarou and the others had defeated the ghost hunters, Kiriha had struck a deal with them. In exchange for a large sum of money, she demanded that they never come after Sanae and that they surrender all the information they had on her. The hunters happily agreed and accepted the deal.

The information they’d turned over included that the real Sanae was a patient of this hospital. Several years ago, she had been afflicted with an unknown disease and grown weak, and was ultimately admitted to the hospital for it. In other words, Sanae wasn’t the ghost of someone who had passed away. And the reason her parents hadn’t returned to room 106 was because they had moved in to their family home, which was closer to the hospital.

Kiriha had been skeptical about all this at first, but after doing her own investigating, she came to the conclusion that this girl was indeed the real Sanae. She then devoted herself to trying to treat her, despite the fact that she had no real reason to other than sheer goodwill. Kiriha disliked fighting and she was keenly aware how painful it could be to wait for a loved one. That’s why she wanted to return Sanae to her parents as soon as possible.

Of course, that would be a problem for Kiriha, who wanted to prolong the battle for room 106. If Sanae recovered and bowed out of the fight for the apartment, the balance of power would shift just enough to incite the radical faction. Kiriha knew she wouldn’t be able to hold them back if they saw an opportunity like that. And Kiriha began laying the groundwork to treat Sanae early on, working under the assumption that Sanae would secede from the battle.

As Kiriha did what she could to stave off the radical faction. She began using underground technology in an attempt to treat Sanae. But as she continued her investigation, Kiriha ran into a rather large hurdle. She discovered that the Sanae in the hospital was conscious.

If ghost Sanae had just been a soul that had escaped its body, it would have been a relatively simple matter to fix. Kiriha would only have needed to use spiritual energy technology to rebind the soul to the body. There was a known procedure for that, and something like it had been used successfully in the past. But it wouldn’t help if the Sanae in the hospital was a normal girl by all accounts. And that considerably puzzled Kiriha.

With that, Kiriha took a step back and assessed what she did know. The ghost hunters had targeted Sanae because she was a forgotten, loose spirit. If her real body could function on its own just fine, nobody would miss the ghost Sanae if they captured her. To them, she was the perfect target, and they wouldn’t have to feel bad about kidnapping her if it wasn’t going to hurt anyone. Investigating from there, Kiriha learned that the ghost Sanae she and the others knew was a mass of the original Sanae’s spiritual energy that had separated from her body and was wandering around in a ghostly form.

A few years ago, spiritual energy had begun separating from Sanae, which caused her body to grow weaker. When her parents realized the toll it was taking on her, they moved to their family home and took her to the hospital. When they left, however, the spiritual energy of Sanae’s that was left in room 106 coalesced into the Sanae they knew now. She stayed there in room 106 where she chased out tenant after tenant, and eventually met Koutarou.

Kiriha didn’t know why Sanae had begun losing spiritual energy in the first place. It might have been a condition she had been born with, or perhaps her soul had been through some kind of trauma in the past. But regardless of the reason, Sanae’s current condition was troubling.

With the majority of her spiritual energy making up her ghost self, Sanae’s body grew ever weaker. And after several years of this, she was now in an incredibly precarious condition. In order to save her, they’d have to rejoin the two Sanaes as soon as possible.

But therein lay the problem. Uniting them meant that they would need to reduce her ghost form to raw spiritual energy in order to be able to channel it into her body. But that kind of case was unprecedented even for the People of the Earth, and they didn’t have the technology to make it happen. It would take time to develop, so as an act of kindness, Kiriha had initiated that project long before Koutarou and the others even found out about Sanae’s condition. She didn’t want them to spend the time it would take to develop fretting over what might happen.

But now Sanae was growing weaker at a pace that outstripped the progress being made on the technology to save her. Tonight it had gotten so bad that it was clear her life was in imminent danger. And with Sanae’s real body in trouble, her ghost form was too. They were still connected in that regard.

“...Strictly speaking, the Sanae that we know isn’t any normal ghost. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that the Sanae sleeping in this bed unconsciously created an artificial ghost with her psychic powers.”

When she finished her explanation, Kiriha turned and pointed to a wall of the hospital room.

“That’s why, despite being a ghost, Sanae can freely change her clothes. Of course, her choices are limited to what she owns...”

The wall Kiriha indicated was lined with hanging clothes—the vast majority of which were familiar to Koutarou and the others. They were all clothes they’d seen ghost Sanae wear before.

“Ah...”

While she looked at the clothes, Sanae could hear the voice of her other self.

When I get better, I’m going to wear them... That’s why I have to hang in there...

It was the voice of the girl sleeping on the bed. That’s what she would think to herself every day as she looked at her wardrobe. And that’s why ghost Sanae could freely change her outfit. It was Sanae’s wish to be able to go out dressed as she pleased.

“Y-You’re kidding... That can’t...”

Sanae was quite shaken. She’d been somewhat skeptical of what Kiriha had been saying up until now. But seeing the clothes and hearing that voice convinced her. The girl sleeping in front of her was indeed her other self.

“Sanae...”

Kiriha gave Sanae, whose eyes were wide open in astonishment, a sympathetic look. The others did too. It was obvious that Sanae was shocked, and there was hardly anything they could do to ease that shock. The wrong words, even if they meant well, might make things worse at a time like this. But not being able to do anything at all for a friend frustrated them.

“That’s not possible! Because, because... Koutarou!”

With tears in her eyes, Sanae flew towards Koutarou and pleaded with him loudly.

“If Kiriha is right, then that means that papa and mama won’t come back to room 106, right?!”

That was the biggest shock to Sanae. Compared to that, everything else almost seemed inconsequential.

“It’s a lie, right, Koutarou?!”

“That’s...”

“Please just say it’s a lie! Please!”

Sanae already knew that it was the truth. But even then, she couldn’t accept it. Sanae just couldn’t believe that her parents had abandoned her, even if they hadn’t meant to, and that they were never coming back for her. It was enough to make her question the reason for her own existence. If she admitted that her parents weren’t coming back, it would be like admitting everything she’d done up until now had been for nothing. And she just couldn’t believe that.

“Waaaaah, uwaaaaaaaah! No, I don’t want this! I don’t want to be alone! I don’t want to, Koutarou! Waaaaaaaaaaah!”

Sanae leaped at Koutarou, crying loudly as she wrapped her arms around his neck. After being told that she’d effectively been orphaned, she felt like Koutarou was all she had.

“Sanae... why do you think you’re alone?”

“Because, because... Ngh, uwaaah! Because! Papa and mama... Papa and mama won’t...!”

Sanae tried her best to convey her feelings, but she couldn’t put them into words. They mostly came out as sobs.

“Your parents brought you to the hospital. They want you to get better. Doesn’t that mean that they want you to come back?”

Sanae’s parents wanted Sanae to regain what she had lost. They wanted her to be well again, and they were doing everything in their power to make that happen. They hadn’t given up on her, and they absolutely hadn’t abandoned her.

“Hnnngh... But, but... I waited and waited there for... for so many years! And it was all... It was all for nothing, waaaaaaaah!”

What Koutarou said was perfectly rational; it was just nearly impossible for Sanae to accept in such an emotional state. She had spent too long alone. That’s why she continued crying, without an outlet for her feelings.

“Say, Sanae...”

Koutarou gently embraced the crying Sanae.

“It’s been a long time since you, me, and everyone else met, but...”

“Waaah! Koutarou, Koutarou!”

Sanae desperately clung to Koutarou, as if she was trying to replace the warmth she had lost with his.

“Was it really that boring? Was meeting all of us all for nothing?”

“What...”

With those words, Sanae stopped moving and her crying gradually quieted down, but she only held on to Koutarou tighter.

“Sanae-chan! You’re my precious friend! You’re definitely not alone!” Yurika declared with a smile.

Sanae was her friend. If she wasn’t, Yurika never would have broken the rules to use magic for personal reasons and save her.

“That’s right, Sanae. At the very least, I have matured after meeting you. And if you say that means nothing, I would be sad. Standing at the top of the mountain isn’t the only goal of mountaineering, right?”

Theia felt much the same way Yurika did. Over the past year, they’d been through all kinds of ups and downs together. They’d grown together. Theia refused to believe that meant nothing, and she wanted Sanae to understand that.

“It’s just as Her Highness says, Sanae-sama. Haven’t many happy things happened since then?”

“Yeah, everyone is right! Besides, a landlord and tenant are like parent and child. We have something special. Who cares if there was a reason for it all or not?”

Ruth and Shizuka felt the same way the other girls did. There had been some minor troubles since they’d met Sanae, but overall, every day had been a good one. And they wanted things between them to continue that way.

“Sanae, nobody thinks of you as unnecessary. Even if you were to lose the game and the right to the room, nobody would tell you to leave. We all need you. And don’t you think it’s the same way with your parents?”

Kiriha was the last to speak up, and even she offered words of encouragement for Sanae. There was no need for Sanae to be sad. Everyone loved her, including her parents. They might have missed each other, but her parents still loved her.

“Everyone...”

Sanae looked at the faces of everyone present with her eyes wide. She had never been told that she was needed so directly before.

“Sanae, what do you think?”

“...Every day is so fun. And I wanted it to stay that way forever...”

Warmth began pulsing through Sanae’s frozen heart once more. It spread in an instant and melted away the ice that had sealed it off.

“Then why are you crying?”

“Because... Koutarou, you still haven’t said anything loving yet.”

“You’re already feeling better, aren’t you?”

“No, I’m depressed! You’re the only one that hasn’t said anything tender to me!”

Sanae flashed a slight smile and brought her cheek closer to Koutarou. Her face was still wet with tears, but she was no longer crying.

“Of course I wouldn’t say anything like that in this situation.”

“Cheapskate.”

“I try not to spoil children.”

In the end, Koutarou didn’t say anything Sanae wanted to hear. But he did hug her a little tighter.

“Heehee...”

Since that conveyed his feelings well enough, Sanae didn’t say anything more. To her, that meant more than words.

“So, Kiriha-san, Sanae’s in danger as things stand, right?”

Still holding Sanae, Koutarou turned to Kiriha for what to do next. Sanae looked up at Koutarou’s face before silently looking at Kiriha too. She understood that she was in danger, but she left the talking to Koutarou.

“That’s right. Currently a device to stabilize spiritual energy is being used, but it’s only a temporary fix.”

Kiriha pointed to the device set up next to the bed as she explained. The device in question was about a meter tall, and looked rather unpolished with its circuity and wires exposed. As Kiriha said, it was a patchwork fix, and it certainly looked the part.

“A device of this size can run for about an hour, but we can’t just set up a larger one and hide it. We need a proper solution.”

Sanae’s unconscious body was growing weaker even as they spoke, and ghost Sanae was only able to maintain her form through the help of the device. Since they were originally one person, the only way to save both of them was to unite them again somehow.

“Is that even possible? You said the technology is still being developed, right?”

“It’s impossible right now, yes, but we’re a step away from a breakthrough.”

Kiriha shook her head.

“We could reduce Sanae’s ghost form to spiritual energy, but we wouldn’t be able to stabilize it with the technology we have now.”

“Then you’re stuck.”

“No. I just said it wasn’t possible with the technology we have now.”

Kiriha shook her head once more and pointed at Yurika.

“Judging from what happened before, Yurika’s magic should be able to make it happen.”

Even with the advanced technology of the People of the Earth, they couldn’t directly heal Sanae. But Yurika could make up for what they lacked with magic. Between the two, they should be able to save her. It was only a possibility because they’d all come to trust in Yurika and her powers. And that was why Kiriha had insisted on bringing the unconscious Yurika with them.

“Me again?!”

Wide-eyed, Yurika pointed at herself in disbelief. She didn’t expect to get another turn.

“Please, Yurika. What we need right now is your precise control of spiritual energy.”

“But, but I’m not very confident I can do it...”

Yurika, exhausted and bewildered, no longer had the same confident aura about her she did earlier.

Doing that again... No, that’s impossible!

Yurika had returned to her pessimistic self.

“If you can’t do it, Sanae will die. You just have to do it, confident or not.”

“Please, Yurika.”

“E-Even if you say that, I can’t do it! Satomi-san, please help me! It’s impossible, right?”

Yurika was starting to tear up and turned to Koutarou for help. She wanted him to tell her she wouldn’t be able to do it so that she could take it easy.

“Koutarou, listen to her.”

“Satomi-kun, can’t you do something?”

Theia and Shizuka turned to Koutarou too, hoping he would know how to encourage her.

“Well...”

It wasn’t like he didn’t understand how Yurika felt. She’d really given it her all before. It felt cruel to ask her to go through it again in this condition.

But... Yurika is probably...

After thinking for a while with his arms crossed, Koutarou looked at Yurika.

“Yurika.”

“It’s impossible, right, Satomi-san?!”

Yurika was convinced that Koutarou would take her side.

“...Is it really?” Koutarou said, looking directly into her eyes.

“Ah...”

Yurika was swept away by Koutarou’s serious stare. His eyes were shining with a strong sense of trust and expectation, and the moment she saw that, Yurika could feel her timidity and anxiety vanish.

I can’t betray this... A precious friend is relying on me...

Confidence and courage began to blossom in their place.

“I’ll do it. I’ll show you I can.”

Yurika nodded without a hint of hesitation. She had regained her strength as a magical girl.

“I’m counting on you.”

“Yes!”

Looking at Yurika, who had regained her love and courage, Kiriha made a fist and then raised her middle and index fingers in the shape of a V.

“That’s one problem taken care of. Only one more remains.”

Kiriha then lowered her middle finger, leaving only her index finger in the air.

“There’s still a problem?”

“There is. Granted, that’s only if we succeed...”

As Kiriha said, she pointed at her head with her raised finger.

“The problem is her memories.”

“Memories? What do you mean?”

Seeing the doleful look on Kiriha’s face, Koutarou had a bad feeling about what she was going to say.

“Sanae will almost certainly lose her memory of the time she spent as a ghost.”

“What?! W-Wait a minute, what’s that supposed to mean?!”

Sanae’s life was in danger. Fortunately there was a solution. That made her feel a little better, but now she had another bomb dropped on her altogether. She was so taken by surprise that even though she’d left the talking to Koutarou so far, she instinctively leaned forward and interrupted Kiriha.

“The memories you have now are memories you have acquired in a spiritual form. Even if they’re reduced to spiritual energy and returned to your body with you, it’s not like they’ll overwrite the memories in the brain of your actual body.”

“I don’t get it! Explain it with words I can understand!”

“Think of it this way. Your time as a ghost is like a past life. Once Sanae wakes up, she most likely won’t remember any of it—including us.”

Once ghost Sanae merged with her body again, she would take the memories written into her soul with her, but they wouldn’t be stored in the network of nerves making up her brain. That way, she’d have to commune with her soul every time she wanted to remember Koutarou and the other girls. But that would be incredibly difficult. Accessing the memories of the soul was practically the same as conjuring memories from a past life. There were extremely few people who had the power to do that, and it was unlikely Sanae was one of them.

“Th-Then I won’t know who Koutarou or all of you are if I stick with the me sleeping over there?!”

“Sadly, I’m afraid that’s the case. I’m sorry, Sanae, but we didn’t have enough time to do anything about your memories.”

Kiriha apologized with a bitter expression. Of course, it wasn’t like Kiriha hadn’t thought about restoring Sanae’s memories. But with things as they were and the development of the technology behind where they would have liked it to be, Sanae’s life took priority over her memories. The length of time she’d been a ghost also posed a problem. The amount of information that would have to be copied over to her brain was simply too much. Because they were more concerned about making sure they could save Sanae’s life, they hadn’t gotten around to coming up with a good way to keep Sanae’s memories.

“N-No...”

Sanae frantically shook her head.

“No, I don’t want that! I definitely don’t want to lose my memories and become a different person!”

Sanae now understood what Kiriha was saying. She meant that, in order for her to survive, she had to throw away her life as she knew it.

“Because... Because I won’t know how warm Koutarou is, or how fun it is to be with everyone!”

Sanae was in tears again. She just couldn’t stand the idea of losing her precious memories.

“I’m stupid, so I’ll just be mean again! Like throwing dictionaries at Koutarou! I finally became friends with everyone, so I don’t want to go back to throwing tantrums like a child again! I finally, finally... waaaaah!”

Losing her memories would mean regressing on all the friendships she’d made along the way, and that would mean the end of the warm, comfortable everyday life she had with those precious people. She hated the idea.

“But Sanae, if you don’t return to your body, you’ll die!”

Even though Sanae didn’t want to sacrifice her memories, Theia wanted her to live, even if it came at a cost.

“I know that... I already know that!”

Sanae had to make a choice. She could either die with her memories, or live without them.

“But I can’t choose! I don’t want to die, but I won’t be me without my memories! That makes it practically the same as dying!”

To Sanae, both options essentially meant the same thing. The Sanae sleeping in bed would be the one to survive. Since her memories as a ghost wouldn’t be passed on, it was like her ghost self would disappear altogether. In a sense, it was the same as dying. So whether she died or she merged with her former self, the Sanae that Koutarou and the others knew would be lost. It was a harsh fate that left Sanae without any real options.

“This is unfair! I won’t see everyone again no matter what I choose!”

Sanae shouted and clung to Koutarou with all her strength.

“No, I want to stay here! I want to be together with everyone!”

Sanae didn’t want to let go of her current life and the friends she’d made in room 106. And most of all, she didn’t want to let go of the warmth of the person who was embracing her with both arms.

“This... This is just unfair!”

The warmth Sanae was holding on to was something she was willing to trade her life for. And that’s why it happened.

“Agh...”

All of a sudden, Koutarou started vomiting blood. Not a moment later, he lost consciousness and collapsed.

“Koutarou?!”

Sanae did her best to hold him up, but he slumped over her like a large, lifeless doll.

“What is this?! At this rate, Koutarou will die!”

As a ghost, Sanae could tell just by touching him. Koutarou was losing spiritual energy at an alarming pace. And if it continued, he would die shortly.

“What?! How?! Koutarou! Koutarou!”

But Sanae didn’t understand why. All she could do was helplessly watch as the person she loved more than anything was dying.