——
Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?
"Sigh… even though Aventurine said that while smiling, it still sounds so sad." Hestia lay draped across the tavern table. "When will he ever obtain something like a family? I really can't bear to see him all alone."
Saying this, the girl could not help muttering softly: "I really want to pull him into my Familia…"
"Uh… Goddess-sama, that is your real purpose, isn't it?"
Even without a Cornerstone and possessing no combat power whatsoever, just relying on the strategy and courage he has displayed so far, Aventurine is more than enough to become the most sought-after existence among the Familias of the major gods. Whoever manages to obtain him, that Familia will take a major step forward.
Even if Aventurine came here, Goddess-sama could never attract him. If it were an employment relationship, the entire Hestia Familia's income for a month probably would not even cover the salary for one of Aventurine's fingers.
But if he were allowed to join some other Familia, it would mean becoming his opponent—and probably no one would want to face a guy who is willing to stake everything as an opponent, right?
——
["…Wake up from this dream and go to the place you should go. Your gamble… is not yet over."]
[Aventurine drew a deep breath: "Before we part, can you answer one more question for me? As someone who walks that Path, can you tell me…"]
["Why must we be born into this world for the sake of death?"]
[Acheron glanced back at him: "I have never thought that way. Neither have you."]
["But Nihility does indeed envelop you and me… and everyone."]
["And precisely because of that, it has no meaning."]
[Aventurine turned sideways to look at the distant black hole behind him: "—But it is still there. If the dice of fate have always been loaded, then that is our destined end. We… why should we resist it?"]
[Acheron looked at him quietly: "My answer may not be able to resolve your confusion, because it has accompanied you all the way and has long since become part of your life. But you once said, 'Sleep is a rehearsal for death.' Why does life fall into slumber? Because we are not yet prepared to welcome death."]
["So you must also understand why we 'want' to make preparations. Even if the ending is already decided, that does not matter. There are far too many things people cannot change. But before that, on the road leading toward the ending, there are also many things people can do."]
["And the ending… will therefore take on an entirely different meaning."]
——
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable.
"Miss Acheron is so gentle, just like Mr. Aventurine's psychologist… Is this her other side?"
Although in this pitch-black space the white-haired form of Miss Acheron looked extremely dangerous, the words she spoke made Josuke feel unexpectedly gentle. Compared to her usual blue-purple-haired state, right now she was simply like a considerate big sister.
"Josuke, do you understand what she's saying? I don't really get it… Can you explain it for me?" Okuyasu scratched his head. He could understand every individual word Acheron said, but once they were strung together he no longer understood.
"Hmm… Let me think how to explain this to you."
Josuke raised one finger and said seriously: "It's probably just like changing underwear?"
"Changing underwear? What does that have to do with changing underwear?" Okuyasu's expression grew even more confused.
"It's a metaphor! I used a metaphor!" Josuke emphasized again. "What Aventurine means is: if we have to change out of our old underwear every morning no matter what, then why do we still bother wearing underwear?"
"Ohhh! So that's it! What Aventurine said makes sense!" Okuyasu showed a sudden look of understanding. "Then Josuke… from now on let's just not wear underwear at all."
"Don't digress!" Josuke shook his head and continued explaining. "But Miss Acheron is the experiential type. She believes that even if you still have to change the underwear the next day, you must still wear it, because underwear brings a comfortable experience—and that is the meaning of wearing underwear! The important part is not the result of changing the underwear, but the process of experiencing the underwear!"
"So, Okuyasu… did you understand?"
Higashikata Okuyasu froze, then opened his mouth into a round shape and once again made "ohh" sounds.
"Josuke, I completely get it!" Okuyasu pointed at Acheron on the celestial screen, eyes shining: "You mean… Miss Acheron changes her underwear every day, right?"
"…Hiss."
Josuke covered his face and forced himself to take a deep breath.
"…Okuyasu, how about you just drink your milk tea."
——
["Look in your pocket. Your friend already gave you the answer." Acheron left without looking back. "…Good luck."]
[Watching the other's gradually receding figure, Aventurine took out the medical advice Ratio had given him from his pocket, opened the lid, and found a rolled-up letter inside.]
[On the letter there were only two short lines:]
["The impossible thing in the dream is not [Death], but [Dormancy]."]
["Live on. Good luck."]
[Aventurine smiled lightly and closed the letter: "…Then I should be going as well."]
——
Nezha: The Devil Child Troubles the Sea.
"Traitor! Traitor! Traitor! I told you not to jump to conclusions so easily! And now you're still saying Professor Ratio is a traitor?! Huh??"
"We are cultivators. Do you know what cultivators emphasize? Have some self-cultivation. Don't make judgments lightly. Don't let anger cloud your mind."
"Where was I counting just now? 837! Oh right, the next one is 838."
Outside the cave, Taiyi Zhenren sat on a large rock counting on his fingers. The rock under his rear was rising and falling slightly; looking carefully, Nezha was beneath it, doing push-ups with the rock on his back while his master sat on top.
"Kid, I didn't force you, okay? You were the one who bet with me that Professor Ratio is a traitor. Willing to bet means you accept the loss. These one thousand weighted push-ups—you can't escape them. If you don't finish, no dinner for you."
Taiyi Zhenren held a watermelon in one hand, eating and spitting out the rinds; the pile of rinds was about to form a small mountain.
Nezha gritted his teeth. He was furious, yet completely unable to refute: "I… how was I supposed to know those two were acting? They acted so real that even Sunday got fooled. Hiss… Eat if you want to eat, but don't fart!"
"Kid, my stomach hasn't been great lately. There are Detoxifying Rejuvenation Pills in my Hundred Treasures Bag. Once you finish the thousand push-ups, I'll take them." Taiyi Zhenren suddenly came back to himself. "Oh my, it's all your fault for interrupting… Where was I counting just now?"
"Don't know."
"Then start counting from the beginning. 1, 2…"
"I… I…" Green veins bulged on Nezha's forehead. "If you're bad at math then don't count! First get off me!"
——
[Kakavasha slowly walked over and looked up at him: "Mister… are you leaving? In the end you still chose… to leave this dreamscape?"]
[Aventurine sighed softly and said gently: "…Yes. Because they are not here… Father, Mother, Sister…"]
["Then where are they?"]
[Aventurine gazed at the distant black hole: "They are in the place everyone eventually goes—a very far, very far place."]