"Kurumi Tokisaki, how is she now? Has she gone into Inverse form?" As soon as she got home, Tohka immediately ran into her house. Then she saw Kurumi already waiting there—and lying on her bed was a young girl. Seeing the shapely body outlined under her blanket, Tohka immediately guessed that the girl definitely wasn't wearing any clothes. The thought made a faint, almost unnoticeable surge of rage flicker through her heart.
"Oh my, what are you thinking?" Obviously, Kurumi noticed Tohka's mood, so she hurried to explain, "Don't worry. Those researchers were scum, but not quite that depraved. It's just that when I brought her back, this little girl was covered in blood, so I took her clothes off. Look, I put them over there."
As she spoke, Kurumi pointed to a pile of bloodstained clothing in the corner of the room—clearly the garments she had just mentioned.
"So, this is the Spirit? Though it doesn't look like she's been harmed." Unlike Tohka and Kurumi's conversation, Miku had gone straight over when she came in, pulling back the blanket covering Nia Honjo. After carefully checking her body, she let out a sigh of relief and looked up to tell Tohka.
"I see. By the way, when you rescued her, what state was she in? Still in the detention room when you took her away?" Hearing Miku's words, Tohka turned to Kurumi and asked.
"Ah, before? She was in the operating room, surrounded by a bunch of people doing God-knows-what. Unfortunately, I arrived a bit late, so I could only 'eat' those bastards and pull this Spirit out. But it's a pity—this little girl has been unconscious the whole time." Kurumi looked a bit curious as she faithfully answered Tohka's question.
"I see. So that bastard must have woken up…or at least given orders. Kurumi, in her current state it's obviously not suitable for you to interrogate her. If she went Inverse, it would be a huge mess. So, I'd like you to wait until she stabilizes." After examining Nia Honjo's body, Tohka found no obvious wounds. Her breathing was steady—at least for now she seemed fine. It looked like she'd only been drugged with anesthetic and would recover when it wore off. But as for what her condition would be after that, Tohka couldn't be sure. So, she quietly instructed Kurumi.
"Oh my, understood. In that case, little Tohka, I'll take my leave. When she's calmed down completely, I'll come find you again." Clearly Kurumi knew plenty about the risks of an Inverse transformation. And from what Tohka suspected, Kurumi herself had once gone Inverse—she'd even heard rumors that a white-haired, exceptionally beautiful version of Kurumi was the true form, while the one in front of her was actually the Inverse. Of course, that was just speculation—she had no proof. So now, knowing this wasn't the right moment to ask questions, Kurumi slowly disappeared into the darkness.
"What exactly is she up to?" Watching Kurumi vanish, Miku muttered with clear irritation. This woman and Tohka were alike, always dropping half-finished statements she couldn't understand, and it left her both frustrated and vaguely uneasy.
"It's nothing. Ignore her. By the way, Miku, Kaguya, Yuzuru —I'd like to ask you all for a favor. Do you trust me?" At that moment, Tohka suddenly looked at them seriously and asked.
"?"
"..."
"Hm, so soon? Have you already decided? Are you ready to fulfill our agreement?" In a secluded place, Reine Murasame looked curiously at Tohka standing before her.
"That's right. As we agreed, I want half of your Spirit power. As for Miku's and the others' power, I've already sealed it directly into Shido Itsuka." After leaving the room, Tohka had gone straight to find Reine.
"Ah, looks like you really can't wait any longer." Reine looked at her blandly, then spoke with a chilling tone: "You're planning to fight him in a final showdown, aren't you? That's why you want to push yourself to your strongest state—to fully activate the Tree of Life within you. But how do you know that man will definitely appear?"
"So, you've figured it out. What, are you against it?" Tohka showed no surprise that Reine had guessed her goal.
"Why would I be? I'd love it if you'd hurry up and kill that bastard. The only reason I didn't act myself is because he's too slippery—and more importantly, I couldn't let him ruin my own plans. But if you're willing, I'm all for it." Reine paused, then added, "All right. I'll give you the power… Wait—what about Kurumi Tokisaki's Spirit energy? Did you seal that?"
"No. She didn't want to, and I won't force her." Tohka shook her head without hesitation. She knew Kurumi would never agree.
"Is that so… What a shame." Reine sounded a little regretful.
"..."
"So, this is the power after activation. Too bad this world's suppression is still strong." After leaving Reine, Tohka focused on feeling the energy within her body.
"Yes. I can already sense that I could manifest fully now. But if we want to truly display our power, we'll need to either return to that world or activate all the Sefirot." At that moment, her Inverse self-appeared beside her, speaking softly.
"You're right. If we did that, we'd finally transcend this world's limitations." Tohka nodded faintly, turning her gaze inward. Aside from the foundation—the base Sefirot belonging to herself—there were three shining nodes: Miku's, the Yamai sisters,' and the fragment of Kurumi's power she'd persuaded her to share.
"Tohka, come back quick. She's woken up—you'd better get over here and see." Just then, her phone rang. Miku's slightly uneasy voice came through.