Tale of Discovery

"You're finally awake," I say in a casual tone upon seeing Ellen gradually open her eyes.

The moment my voice fades, her eyes shoot wide open as an expression of pure malice covers her face.

Shortly, her expression changes to that of confusion with hints of anxiety apparent within her eyes.

"It seems like you've already noticed it," I say as I reach my arm forth and gently rub the tip of my finger against her motionless body, "You are now incapable of any form of movement.

"In other words, other than your mouth, no body part of yours will respond to your will properly."

As a response to my words, Ellen simply glares at me for ten seconds or so before opening her mouth and inquiring, "What do you want?"

"Me? I believe I was minding my own business until you and your little comrades decided to capture me or whatever."

"Minding your own business, you say? Do you think we're unaware?"

"Unaware of what, exactly?" I query, intrigued by her wording.

"You made contact with the other side, didn't you? In fact, you came from there."

Sensing the certainty in her voice, a perplexed look forms on my face as I deliberate on what this 'other side' she's referring to is.

Could she be aware of the existence of Platforms and the Rift? No, that shouldn't be the case.

Nevertheless, I should use an indirect approach to get her to speak.

"Other side? What could you be speaking of?"

"Don't play dumb," she responds with a scowl, "There are traces of energy from the other side all over your body."

Hm… Traces of energy from the other side, she says. I doubt she's referring to my Code so it must be something else. Even so, I can't think of anything right now that would result in such a misunderstanding.

Still, just to be sure, I should see whether she is speaking of my Code or not.

With that thought in mind, I raise my right arm and make use of Light Manipulation to form a small ball of light atop my palm as I say, "Is this what you're speaking of?"

As a response to my actions, Ellen's expression turns gloomy as she opens her mouth and says, "Don't make fun of me. You know what I am speaking of."

Hah~ This girl doesn't get it, does she? It is specifically because I don't know that I am asking you.

"Forget that," I say, "Right now, it's your life that's within my hands not the other way, so I am not obliged to answer any of your questions, but, you, on the other hand…"

"It's useless," she says in a firm tone, "No matter what you do to me, I won't say a single word."

This again…

"The last time someone said that to me, they died from falling a few hundred meters before getting revived and cooperating peacefully."

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm just saying that you will tell me everything you know, be it sooner or later. Trust me, the more you cooperate, the better it is for your mental stability."

I could've begun questioning her through Indoctrination a while ago, but that would've probably lead me to a dead end. By doing what I am doing now, Ellen is most likely going to give in and share some 'less valuable' information of her own accord. I could then ask her questions based on said 'less valuable' information.

"What are you planning?" Ellen's voice with a tinge of uncertainty reaches my ears, seemingly taking my threat seriously.

"An interrogation process," I respond nonchalantly.

---

"I suppose you're planning to leave her here?" Kurumi's voice reverberates within my ears as soon as I exit the room in which I interrogated Ellen.

"Yes, as I simply have no other choice," I reply while shrugging.

"You're not going to stay?" she asks as I prepare to teleport away, to which I respond by nodding my head once.

The information I have received is much more troubling than I thought it would be. I need to take some time to think of a few things.

"If so, before you leave, allow me to inform you of something," she says as her tone gradually gets colder.

Looking over at Kurumi who is standing a few meters away from me, I notice that she has a cold expression on her face, with her usual smile nowhere to be found.

"Something has happened recently that weakened the barrier between the two sides."

If it were earlier, I wouldn't have understood what the 'sides' signified, but now that I have interrogated Ellen, I have a general understanding of the term.

Apparently, there exists a 'world' parallel to the one that we're in right now. According to Ellen, no one has been able to successfully cross over to the other side, but there have been a few cases of the opposite occurring, or, at least, something similar.

"Which means, she might appear," Kurumi continues, "And when she does, she will most definitely seek you out."

"Why?" I ask, perplexed by Dominion's insistence on meeting me. The only reasons I can think of right now amount to two. One; she has a past with me, hence why she would like to meet me once again.

Two; Dominion wants something from me.

There is a high chance that it's both cases, so it's meaningless to differentiate the two.

"That, I do not know," Kurumi responds, "But it's bugging me to no end that she wants what's mine."

Amused by her words, I chuckle for a few seconds before grinning and saying, "Yours? When did that occur."

"Ara~ Shido, don't tell me you've already forgotten what happened that eventful night," Kurumi utters in a frosty tone as time seems to slow down.

Doubtful of my senses, I move my arm, only to notice that fissures in space occur as I do so.

The sight is both awing and somewhat anxiety-inducing. Whatever it is that's causing this, it's most definitely related to Kurumi's current state.

"Hey now, calm down, will you?" I say, my voice 'cracking' as if I am speaking into a fan.

As if just noticing that something is amiss, Kurumi's brows furrow while everything around us returns to normal.

"Are you alright?" I question as I walk toward her.

From the looks of it, she was unaware of what she did but has an idea of what happened.

"I'm fine," she responds with a smile on her lips after recollecting herself, "Please forgive me for my unsightly display."

"It's fine, as long as you're not hurt," I say, "Tell me if something is wrong okay?"

It would be better not to delay my departure any longer, so I give Kurumi a peck on the lips before bidding her farewell and teleporting back to my room.

---

"Good morning," I say to Kotori who just stepped into the kitchen while rubbing her eyes.

"Good morning, Big Brother," she responds in a sleepy tone as she makes her way to the dining table.

"You're already dressed for school, I see," I state as I cast a glance at the uniform she has on, "Too bad, you won't be going."

"Eh?" a confused voice escapes from Kotori's lips as she looks over at me with a questioning look on her face.

"We have a date to go on, remember?"

"Ah!" Kotori utters as a look of realization appears on her face, "We are going on a date? Just the two of us?"

Rolling my eyes at the hassle of her having different 'personas', I say, "There will be someone else with us."

Hearing this, Kotori pouts as she rubs the tip of her finger against the table while muttering, "Tch. What a letdown."

All of a sudden, Tohka, who was already seated at the dining table before Kotori arrived, turns her head to face me and hurriedly asks, "Shido, you're going on a date?"

"Yes, and no," I respond, "It's different from the dates we went on."

Looking at her, I notice that she wants to say something but is unsure, so I take this chance to say, "If you're thinking of joining us, forget it."

"Oh…" she utters as she lowers her head in disappointment.

"Don't be like that," I say in a consoling manner, "I will take you on a date tomorrow, alright?"

Hearing this, Tohka's face brightens as she raises her head and excitedly nods her head.

Releasing a sigh, I get back to preparing breakfast with a small smile on my lips as I think over the topics that will most likely be discussed during the 'date'.