Seraphim is a Bystander

The Seraph and the Genius Named Ichijou

 
 
Dr. Ichijou stared intently at Aoi with a serious expression.
I didn’t know what she had discovered from the tests, but she looked like someone with absolute {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} certainty in what she saw.

“The power and circuits you possess… they’re not something a one-and-a-half-year-old child, who doesn’t know how to control their abilities, should have.”
“Nn~?”
Possessing great power but with the mind of a toddler, Aoi simply looked sleepy and confused.
Even so, Dr. Ichijou continued speaking without pause.

“You’re clearly used to using your ability. Circuits that have been refined to this degree—optimized through such repeated use—aren’t even common among those who fight on the front lines against virtual entities.”
Ah…
I messed up by tinkering with Aoi’s circuits to make it easier for me to use her power.
As I mentally facepalmed at my own mistake, Dr. Ichijou continued speaking.
“If Aoi truly had the intelligence to use her abilities to that extent, there’s no way her parents or family wouldn’t have noticed.
Not to mention, her grandmother is a human lie detector with an eye for truths that make researchers cry.”

“Which is exactly why, for a while now, I’ve been talking not to Aoi, but to you.
Won’t you respond already?”
“Huaaah…”
Watching Aoi yawn innocently was oddly soothing.
Still, I couldn’t keep ignoring this.

Hmm…
I guess I won’t know her intentions unless I come out myself.
And if I want to confirm that, I have no choice but to show myself.
Alright—time for Aoi to sleep while I take over through a mental switch.
“...!”

The moment I switched with Aoi, I saw Dr. Ichijou’s face twist in sheer astonishment.
...Yeah, as usual, my body’s all female, and my hair's long. Dammit.
“You went out of your way to get me alone—so what exactly do you want from me?”
As I asked, Dr. Ichijou stood speechless, eyes wide with shock.

“...Amazing. I didn’t expect the transformation to be this complete.”
“Which is why I didn’t want to come out.”
She nodded in understanding at my words.
But she clearly couldn’t suppress her excitement, and the questions came pouring out.

“Even your bone structure has changed—how does that work, exactly?”
“Can’t tell you.”
Probably that damned god’s fault anyway.

“You could hear me calling out to you earlier—so what do you usually do?”
“I’m just inside Aoi, sensing what she senses.”
Though I can actually perceive more than Aoi does… I’m not technically lying.

“Do you harbor any hostility toward Aoi?”
“Not at all. I actually want her to live a long, happy life.”
That way, I can enjoy my extended vacation.

“Was it you who optimized her circuits and trained her abilities?”
“It was just a way to kill time.
I want Aoi to get stronger. That way, maybe she’ll save the world without needing my help.”
...Wait, why am I answering all these questions so seriously?
I’m just going to erase her memory later anyway.

“Can I ask you something now?”
“Ah! Sorry, I got carried away. Ask me anything.”
Though Aoi's body is immature, I can still speak clearly through it.
Dr. Ichijou, now somewhat composed, waited patiently for my question.

“Dr. Ichijou… what do you plan to do now that you know all this?”
She looked momentarily puzzled, then smiled as she replied.
“Nothing, really. I don’t plan to ask you anything you don’t want to answer,
and I’m not going to tell anyone else if you don’t want me to.”

“...Huh.”
To my surprise, she wasn’t lying.
I confirmed that with my invisible-mode halo reading her heart.
“It seems you really aren’t lying.”

“...Wait, can you read minds too?!”
Her heart was full of monstrous curiosity—but also a staggering amount of ethics and compassion.
How can someone balance those polar opposites so well? I honestly want to peek into her past.
“Yes… but don’t try to communicate just in your head, okay?
Reading thoughts every time is kind of a hassle.”

“Ugh… I see. Sorry. I couldn’t help it, I got too curious…”
...So she was doing that.
“Anyway, let’s go ahead and inject the nanomachines and return.
We wouldn’t want your parents to worry.”

“Alright. Please go ahead.”
Dr. Ichijou, now calm, guided me to the operating table in the lab.
She pressed what looked like an injector against me.
“Here we go~ It won’t hurt at all~”

Whoa…
She’s right. That didn’t hurt one bit. Science is amazing.
Not that pain would’ve been a problem for me, anyway.
“It’ll take about five minutes before you can use it.”
“Understood. Shall we head back?”

“Yep.”
As Dr. Ichijou picked me up to leave, she suddenly spoke again.
“Oh, right! We’re keeping this a secret from everyone else, right?”

“Yes, and please don’t leave behind any records either.
You can use this for your own personal research, but that’s it.”
She nodded with a smile.
Just as I was about to switch minds with Aoi again, Dr. Ichijou raised her voice once more.

“Oh! One last thing—may I ask something?”
“...If I can answer it.”
I replied a bit cautiously. She smiled.

“Could you tell me your name?”
Ah, right. I hadn’t told her.
Well, it’s not like it matters much.
“...It’s Seras. You can call me whatever you like.”

“Great! I’m Ichijou! Nice to meet you, Seras-chan!”
She looked so satisfied as she turned toward the door.
...Yeah, I take that back.

“Actually, please don’t call me ‘Seras-chan.’”
“Eh? But it’s so cute~”
Exactly why I hate it!
And as I switched back with Aoi, I could still hear Dr. Ichijou chuckling behind me.

Tips:
In truth, the sensory sharing is one-way—from Aoi to Seras.