Seraphim is a Bystander

Limits and Manifestation
(This chapter is from Sera’s perspective. The next will return to Aoi’s point of view.)
 

 
I watched the situation Aoi had gotten himself into with a book in hand—one I’d added to the Archive some 2.4 billion years ago. As I saw him reaching his limit, I sighed and muttered to myself.
“I guess… this is where he tops out.”

『…Huh?』
…Oops. Forgot to mute that so Aoi wouldn’t hear me.
Reacting to my slip, he let his guard down for a split second—and there’s no way a seasoned killer would let that go unpunished.
Before the attacker’s dagger could land, I confirmed that Aoi had lost consciousness and stepped in to take over.

“〈Barrier〉”
“...!?”
With the exact same motion as before—thrusting a dagger toward Aoi’s neck—the black-clad man attacked, but I blocked it with a barrier.
He froze, thrown off by the changed sensation in his hand and the fact that Aoi’s appearance had shifted into mine.

Right. If the Master shows up and sees me like this, that’s going to be a pain. Better take care of that.
“〈Severing Field〉”
I modified the flame wall Aoi had cast earlier, isolating only the space around us—me and the man in black—into a sealed domain.
The once-wall of fire expanded into a dome that surrounded us, cutting us off entirely from the outside world.

“Just how many tricks do you have up your sleeve…?”
“...Honestly, if you hadn't come at me with full intent to kill, or if Master had made it in time, I wouldn't have needed to step out at all.”
“So I stepped on a tiger’s tail, huh... But what now? You’ve sealed yourself in with me. The situation hasn’t changed—we’re still alone.”

“Funny thing to say, considering you haven’t tried to strike again.”
He was still within striking range. If he simply thrust past my barrier, he could land a killing blow—yet he didn’t.
When I pointed that out, he seemed to realize for the first time that he hadn’t attacked, and instinctively backed off, visibly shaken.
“...You’re right. Honestly, I can’t {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} get a read on you right now.”
Sweat slid down the bit of skin I could see beneath his hood.
He was skilled enough to feel the vast difference in power between us—between earth and sky.

…Now, what to do from here?
I couldn’t let Aoi die, so I stepped in, sure—but if I take this guy out myself, it’d be far too suspicious.
Aoi can’t win against him, not even once in a hundred tries. As I was mulling this over, the man began preparing some sort of ability.
“...Sigh. For now, 〈Don’t Move〉.”
“…!? …!”

“Ah—go ahead and 〈Breathe〉. You can 〈Speak〉 too.”
“Ggh… What the hell are you…?!”
Guess I bound too much and locked him down more than necessary.
Well, with him frozen like that, we can have a little chat. I closed the distance, undoing the gap from earlier.

“Ngh… Huff… So this is it, huh...?”
“No need to be so pessimistic. I’m not planning on killing you. I just want to have a little chat.”
“…What could you possibly want from me in this situation?”

“Ah, well—nothing you need to answer, really. I’ll just find out for myself.”
“…?”
Ignoring his confusion, I floated up slightly and moved in.
I pulled down the hood covering his face, revealing a surprisingly handsome man in his late twenties. With the same hand, I reached forward and covered his eyes.

“What the… What are you trying to do?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
I gave a vague reply as I summoned a ring and peered into his mind.
Purpose. Motive. Accomplices. Execution plan. Escape route.
I skimmed through the key info and mentally took notes.

…Alright.
Next—what happens in the future?
I played out thousands, tens of thousands of futures:
—If he died here.
—If he lived.
—If I erased his memory.
—If I let him remember.
As I scanned through the countless possibilities, I felt a presence outside the barrier.
When I extended my senses, I heard a voice—one I’d often heard through Aoi.

『Hey! Aoi! You there?! If you’re alive, say something!』
Outside the dome, the Master and others had apparently dealt with the terrorists and found the young lady.
Most likely, she’d told them that Aoi was still inside the flame barrier, and the Master was now trying to break through to him.
“…Well then, Mr. Criminal. From this point on, you 〈Forget everything I did to you〉. And…”

As I spoke, the man’s consciousness started to fade, my words pulling him under.
I gently pulled his hood back over his head, retreated a few steps, and released the barrier—returning to Aoi’s unconscious body.
As my body began falling to the ground, I felt the familiar weightlessness of fading away—returning to the mental world.