After that, she followed Inori and drew Voids from dozens of people back and forth, all during the breaks between classes. They couldn't do it in obvious places, so they had to lure each person over one by one. There were both boys and girls, but none of the results were what they were looking for... 'bandages.'
Speaking of Void types, it really opened her eyes. She had thought the cup from earlier was already the limit, but she hadn't expected even more bizarre items—things like pencil sharpeners, wallets, soap, glasses, game consoles, vases, dolls, and even—
A refrigerator this time!!
"Mm... Mio, help me hold this."
Inori was struggling a bit, holding a large freezer in both hands as she called for help. Mio immediately stepped in and lifted it with ease. Her strength was immense, effortlessly setting the refrigerator down on the ground, allowing Inori to let out a sigh of relief as she shook her numb arms.
"What kind of things are these?"
She muttered to herself as she opened the refrigerator door. Inside were stored snacks and drinks. She casually took out a bag, tore it open, and ate a few bites.
It actually... tasted pretty good!
"Want some?"
She looked at Inori and gestured with the bag of chips in her hand.
"Haa... no need... you eat it."
Inori exhaled and leaned against the wall to catch her breath, then let the refrigerator dissipate, returning it to the woman's body.
The chips were still there?!
She looked at the still-solid snack in her hand in surprise. This was way too surreal. If she had known, she would've taken a few more bags.
"Tasty?"
After catching her breath, Inori leaned against the wall, wiping the sweat from her forehead. Seeing the girl in front of her acting like a child, she smiled faintly and asked softly.
"Mm... quite delicious."
She nodded.
"Pfft..."
Inori chuckled, lifted the girl beside her, and helped her lean against the wall to rest. Then she stood up and checked the time—it was already noon.
But they still hadn't found the target... and they hadn't even finished searching one class. Sigh.
"Huh? Um... Inori? Raiden...? Why are you here?"
The girl who woke up touched her head, looking confused.
"We were just passing by..."
The Shogun stepped forward and explained briefly.
"Mm... I see... then I'll be going."
The other party waved as if nothing had happened and left.
How strange...
She sighed inwardly.
...
And just like that... the day passed—
The two returned home after school with no results...
"Haa... what exactly is this so-called 'bandage'?"
Lying on the dining table, she muttered gloomily. It was already around eight in the evening. Neither of them had even changed out of their school uniforms, still troubled by this matter.
Her legs, which had been propped up on the chair, slowly lowered before she shifted into another posture. Her white-stockinged feet intertwined and pressed against the chair leg, her delicate toes occasionally moving inside the socks. Her head rested on her arms atop the table, her long hair loosened and cascading down her back, giving her a pitifully endearing appearance.
"I'm not sure either, but Gai said that once we see it, we'll recognize it easily."
Inori, sitting beside her, watched her like this with a fond smile in her heart, resting her chin on one hand as she replied.
"You mentioned before... Void? It's a manifestation of the human heart?"
She slightly lifted her gaze to look at the girl watching her.
"Mm, a person's Void comes in many forms and functions. It depends on the owner's fears and psychological state—just as I said before, it's a manifestation of the heart."
"A manifestation... of the heart."
It was different from her inner mental space... this was a true physical form?
She lowered her eyes and thought.
"For example... the one I extracted earlier, Daryl Yan. His Void was a prism that could reflect light, unpredictable—just like his personality. Multifaceted, complex. Emotions like joy, sadness, fear, anger... all shifting within him like a prism. He's a very complicated person."
"..."
She listened quietly to the girl's explanation, looking at her own slender hands, idly scratching at her neatly trimmed light-purple nails.
"In fact... the more insane a person's inner world is, the more twisted their Void becomes... and the more powerful and dangerous it is."
Inori said.
"Then Inori... your Void..."
That blade...
"...Me... so, that's why... I'm a... monster."
Inori paused for a moment, then smiled at her as if accepting it.
Tap...
She thought for a moment, then gently took the girl's hand and slowly pressed her palm against her own chest. Feeling that softness, Inori instinctively tried to withdraw her hand, but it was pressed back in place.
"Mio///... what are you..."
Inori rarely blushed like this... she could feel the trembling in the palm against her chest.
"...Can you extract mine?"
She didn't pay attention to that and asked softly.
"... (shakes head)"
Inori tried to activate her Void power slightly, but it was completely ineffective. There wasn't even any light—only the perfect softness in her hand, which made her somewhat reluctant to let go.
"I see... what a pity."
She let out a faint breath. She had wanted to see what her own Void looked like... but thinking about it, that made sense—she was no longer seventeen.
And perhaps Musou Isshin was her Void in another sense? Or the shared Void of the Raiden family? Or perhaps her Void was her mother, Raiden Makoto?
Only after snapping back to reality did she realize how awkward their current posture was. Looking at how she was holding Inori's hand against her own chest, she felt a bit embarrassed.
"Ahem... sorry."
She coughed lightly to ease the awkwardness and let go of the other's hand.
"N-no, it's fine."
Inori blushed and withdrew her hand, secretly rubbing her fingertips as if recalling that softness.
"Are we continuing tomorrow?"
She then stood up and walked into the kitchen, washing the dishes that had been left untouched for several days. Wearing an apron, she faced away from Inori as she asked.
"Mm... it's fine. If you find it troublesome, Mio, I can do it alone."
Inori replied while watching her from the kitchen doorway.
"How could I let you handle it alone?"
The Shogun smiled casually without turning back.
"..."
Inori didn't respond, lowering her gaze to the polished dining table as she thought about the plan for tomorrow.
Ding—!
At that moment, the doorbell rang, drawing both of their attention.
"Will you get it?"
She asked.
"... (nods)"
Inori stood up and walked to the entrance. She first glanced at the monitor beside it and saw that it was—Hare...
"...It's Hare."
She turned and informed the Shogun in the kitchen.
Click~
She then opened the door, revealing the girl to both of them.
"Hare?"
"Ah... um... can I come in?"
Seeing Inori, Hare smiled awkwardly and asked cautiously.
"...Please, come in."
Inori tilted her head slightly in confusion at her behavior but stepped aside to let her in. She instinctively looked for the Shogun and, seeing her in the kitchen, felt a bit relieved.
"Hare?"
The Shogun turned her head after finishing the dishes and asked out of habit.
"Mm... haa..."
The girl was clearly nervous, fidgeting the whole time. She had been in this house many times before, but today she seemed unusually tense, which caught their attention.
Drying her hands and removing her apron, the Shogun walked into the living room and sat beside the girl at the low table, looking at her.
"...What's wrong? Why are you so nervous?"
After sitting down, she leaned slightly closer and asked softly. At the same time, she casually removed her school jacket, revealing the alluring figure beneath her fitted white shirt. Inori also sat beside her, watching.
"Um... there's something I've been wanting to say... but... I've been too afraid."
Hare spoke carefully, her hands clasped together, trembling slightly.
"Mm... go ahead. What is there to be afraid of?"
She gently placed her hand over the girl's hand in reassurance.
"Actually—"
A few minutes later—
Hare recounted everything she had experienced before to the two girls beside her. Her face remained pale the entire time, and she was clearly nervous, but with the Shogun holding her hand, she managed to find the courage to continue.
"—Th-that's how it was... I'm sorry!"
After finishing, Hare apologized again.
"..." ×2
The two fell silent for a long moment. Then they exchanged a glance before looking back at the girl between them.
"Mm... I'm sorry..."
As if sensing their gaze, Hare lowered her head like a small kitten and apologized again in a soft voice.
"Why are you apologizing? This isn't your fault."
She smiled helplessly and gently poked the girl's forehead.
"But... I saw... that kind of scene... Mio's..."
Hare shook her head.
"Mm... so?"
She tilted her head slightly, a faint smile on her lips.
"...Eh?"
Hare looked at her in confusion.
"Are you... afraid of me?"
She asked softly.
"... (shakes head)!"
Hare immediately shook her head.
How could she be afraid of Mio? Absolutely not. She had only been startled by that scene at the time.
"That's enough then... though I admit I killed someone. For that, I should apologize to you."
She lowered her gaze slightly, looking at her with a complicated expression.
"But as long as you're not afraid of me, that's enough. I won't hurt you."
She spoke as gently as possible, trying to reassure her.
"Hare... GHQ doesn't have many good people. To achieve their goals, they would even attack civilians in quarantine zones."
Inori spoke up on her behalf, worried that the girl might misunderstand Mio—or even come to dislike her.
"I won't... I understand. I-I didn't misunderstand you, Mio."
Hare nodded quickly in realization, then cupped the face of the slightly dejected girl in front of her, gently coaxing her like an older sister.
"...Mm."
Hearing that, the Shogun's slightly downcast expression gradually softened into a smile.
So cute~!
Hare took a critical hit internally!
"I was just... worried... that I might have ruined something, or made a serious mistake."
Hare lowered her gaze at the two of them.
"I don't know what kind of world lies behind you two. You've never told me. I don't even know why you went to Roppongi back then. Haa... I don't know anything. And because of that, I'm scared. I'm scared I might affect you. After seeing that... did I cause you trouble?"
She had only been worried about them, gone to look for them, hoping they were safe... and yet ended up causing trouble. Just thinking about it made her feel deeply guilty.
"Haa, honestly... what trouble? Inori, is there any trouble?"
The Shogun shook her head helplessly and deliberately asked Inori.
"None at all... if anything, once we knew it was Hare, we felt relieved."
Inori smiled and reassured her.
That was true. At first, they had thought it was someone else, which would have been troublesome. But now...
Hare wouldn't go to GHQ to report them... though there were still a few doubts.
"Eh? Really? R-really no problem? I won't cause you trouble?"
Hare was still a bit cautious. After all, she had never experienced something like this before and lacked confidence.
"It's fine. But we still need to confirm something. Is that alright?"
The Shogun thought for a moment—it was still necessary for Inori to draw her Void to see if it was truly the 'bandage.'
"Mm... okay... but... how?"
Hare nodded, still a bit confused.
"It's simple. Just face me like this."
Inori guided the girl to face her directly.
"Mm... okay."
Hare obediently sat facing the pink-haired girl in a duck-sitting posture, her back left to the Shogun, who held her in an embrace.
Inori nodded in satisfaction, then raised her hand, moving it toward the girl's chest.
"Eh? W-wait—Inori///?"
Seeing Inori's hand as if it were about to touch her chest, Hare's face flushed instantly. She instinctively tried to cover herself, her body squirming slightly as she leaned back.
"It's not what you think. Relax."
From behind, the Shogun noticed the girl's nervousness and spoke softly by her ear to reassure her.
"Mm... okay///"
Since Mio said so, she believed her. Her body gradually relaxed, immersing herself in the warmth of the embrace behind her.
Still, as she watched Inori's hand slowly approach, her heart pounded wildly.
"(It's okay... don't be afraid.)"
The Shogun continued to comfort her in a whisper.
"I'll be gentle..."
Inori added softly.
"..."
Her face flushed red as she nodded silently, instinctively closing her eyes. She didn't know what would happen, but closing her eyes felt safer.
Hum~
With her hand hovering just a few centimeters from the girl's chest, Inori activated her Void power. The next moment, a hollow opened in Hare's chest. Fine silver threads surged out, gathering into Inori's palm.
"Mm~"
The instant the opening formed, an unbearable tingling and heat spread through her body. The strange sensation made Hare let out a soft, involuntary moan.
"...!"
Inori sensed the moment and slowly began pulling the flowing silver threads outward. This caused the girl's body to tremble, her chest arching forward as her back curved, instinctively pressing herself into the Shogun's embrace.
"Mmhn~!"
The extraction pushed the already strange sensation to its peak, making her let out another soft, alluring sound.
...Why does this feel so different?
Holding the girl in her arms, the Shogun felt puzzled as she looked at Hare, who had her eyes closed, face flushed, lips slightly parted as if immersed in some kind of atmosphere.
This wasn't right... the boys earlier all looked like they were in extreme pain. Why was it like this with Hare... so intimate instead?
She felt the girl's slender fingers clutch tightly at her clothes. In response, she gently held her hand, reassuring her.
Hum~
Extraction complete.
The light faded, revealing the result—a silver bandage woven from fine threads, light and dreamlike, with delicate patterns and faint violet markings. It floated like a living thing, slowly wrapping around Inori's arm, warm and gentle.
"Looks like this is it."
Holding the unconscious girl, she wiped the sweat from her forehead and spoke to Inori.
"Mm... bandage. Target confirmed."
Inori nodded.
The Shogun glanced at the unconscious girl resting in her arms, then at the softly glowing Void. A faint smile appeared in her heart.
Just as Inori said... a Void is the manifestation of the heart. This bandage was just like the girl herself—warm, caring, delicate, sincere. It carried a protective tenderness and a healing nature. This was Hare.
"Healing... it must be a very useful Void. But it's also fragile, just like Hare's heart. So unless absolutely necessary, we shouldn't draw her Void."
Inori reminded herself softly, then let the bandage dissolve into silver threads and return to the girl's body.
Hum~
After the light faded, Hare gradually regained consciousness in her arms.
Perhaps due to her constitution, she woke up faster than others. Normally, it would take a few minutes for someone to recover. This surprised the Shogun a little.
"Mm... I...? Mio...?"
As soon as she woke, the girl instinctively called her name, making her smile as she gently caressed her cheek.
"Do you feel unwell?"
She asked.
"No... I just... what happened?"
Still lying in her embrace, the girl asked in confusion.
"Nothing. We just took a look at your Void."
Inori explained.
"...Void? Wh-what did it look like?"
Perhaps due to her personality, she asked obediently despite her confusion.
"...It suits you very well."
The Shogun answered.
"Mm... really? Mio... do you like it...?///"
For some reason, she asked such an embarrassing question, driven by a feeling she didn't fully understand.
"Pfft... I like it."
The Shogun couldn't help but laugh softly as she replied.
"Mm... that's... good."
Hare smiled in relief, then once again nestled into her warm embrace, closing her eyes.
"Mio, I'll inform Gai."
After saying that, Inori picked up the terminal and walked over to the dining table, sitting down. She gestured to her, and she nodded, continuing to hold the girl clinging to her.
As expected—everyone around her was gentle.