Spirits, born from the will of Mio, were the path she prepared for Ryuya to become a Planetary Spirit.
Kyouno Natsumi, Itsuka Kotori, Tokisaki Kurumi, Himekawa Yoshino, Honjo Nia, Izayoi Miku, the Yamai Sisters, etc., ten Spirits in total, each representing a number, a Sephirah on the Kabbalah Tree of Life.
Contemplating how to seal the spiritual power of the ten Spirits within himself, Ryuya guessed that Mio created the Spirits precisely to allow him to become a Planetary Spirit, to ascend to the same level of existence as her.
And until he became a Planetary Spirit, or at least until Mio deemed Ryuya strong enough, she would likely continue hiding from him. She might even be watching him from somewhere right now.
Just as Ryuya suspected.
"Hmm... I want to soak in the hot spring with Ryu."
Although she had decided not to meet Ryuya until he became a Planetary Spirit, or at least until he had devoured five Spirits, Mio, the Origin of Spirit whose sole reason for existence since her birth was her beloved, found it difficult.
Quietly hiding in a place, watching her lover's figure, the Origin of Spirit was practically entranced.
"Nee-san? What are you looking at?"
Unaware of what had happened to Mio recently, in Mukuro's memory, Mio had always appeared powerful, magnificent, calm, and wise.
Although she called Mio 'Nee-san', Mukuro actually saw Mio as her mother. She had never experienced familial warmth, so she truly valued her sister.
"Nothing, it's nothing. Let's go to sleep, Mukuro."
Smiling and shaking her head at Mukuro, Mio sighed. The more she looked at Ryuya, the more she missed her husband.
'Oh well, I couldn't get distracted by him, I had to be strong!'
Meanwhile, on Ryuya's side...
"Ryuya-san, the temperature of your hot spring is quite nice."
Her black hair, not tied into twin tails or any other style, simply cascaded over her shoulders.
Wrapped only in a towel, the girl with the golden left eye was none other than the Worst Spirit, Tokisaki Kurumi.
Emerging directly from the Shadow Domain into Ryuya's room, she slowly stepped into the hot spring.
As the water submerged her body, an expression of immense enjoyment spread across her face.
"Kurumi, why did you come to my side?"
Smelling the fragrance in the air, Ryuya suddenly realized Kurumi seemed to be wearing perfume. It wasn't her usual body scent… clearly, the girl had made special preparations.
"The hot spring in my room broke. I had no choice but to come here."
Smiling, feeling the water's warmth, whether from the heat or something else, the blush on Kurumi's face never faded.
"The hot spring broke?"
Hearing this, Ryuya thought to himself, 'Wasn't this inn's hot spring a natural one? If it broke... probably the entire inn's hot spring system would be out of order.'
Though he thought this, Ryuya wasn't a fool. He couldn't just say it out loud, could he?
The meaning behind Kurumi's actions was already clear. The girl had taken the initiative, so how could he just ignore it?
So...
[Omit twenty thousand words here.]
"Time is immensely considerate. Time is also immensely cruel."
"Can I... change this world?"
Eyes of gold and crimson looked towards the heavens. Beside the solitary Time Spirit stood only her own clones.
Treading upon countless skeletons, all her own corpses, she was the Worst Spirit, the Spirit who wanted to change the world, Tokisaki Kurumi, the one cursed by the Origin of Spirit.
"Origin of Spirit... I must... change my fate."
Recalling her past, the Tokisaki Kurumi who wanted to completely rewrite fate was proud, outstanding, a born genius.
Aware of her extraordinariness, understanding her path, she had always advanced unwaveringly on this road. No person or event could ever make her change her mind.
However...
"Me? My name is Takami Ryuya, Tokisaki Kurumi-san."
That man was special.
Well, that was Kurumi's first impression of Ryuya.
A special man, a strange man, a charming man, an attractive man.
Feeling a peculiar attraction from Ryuya, Kurumi didn't understand why a human could evoke such strong favorability in her. But she knew that no matter what this feeling was, she was Tokisaki Kurumi, alone. She wouldn't let anyone dictate her feelings.
Trusting no one, firmly believing this after being betrayed by the Origin of Spirit, by that Mio, Kurumi decided: the only one she could trust was herself!
But she was still so envious that he could attract cats!
"By the way, are you from AST or DEM? Otherwise, I don't understand how you know my identity."
Hearing Ryuya call her by name, Kurumi's first reaction was that an enemy had appeared.
Following Ryuya to the outskirts, after their fight, she realized she was completely outmatched. The battle felt less like a fight and more like an adult toying with a child.
"You'd better be careful, Ryuya-san. From now on, you are being targeted by Tokisaki Kurumi!"
Leaving such fierce words, from then on, Kurumi fought Ryuya every day.
'Hmm, this guy is too strong. Using my domain for sneak attacks is completely useless.'
'I can't match him in strength or speed either. What should I do?'
Every day, she contemplated how to defeat Ryuya, unconsciously getting drawn in, then inexplicably attracted to him.
Gradually, Kurumi suddenly realized her reason for challenging Ryuya was no longer to defeat him, but to have an excuse to see him.
'If I really beat him, would I have any reason to come find him afterwards?'
Thinking back now, the laughable change was utterly unexpected. As joy and memories were worn away by the wash of time, just before the entity named Tokisaki Kurumi vanished completely, she suddenly found a tiny glimmer of hope.
'Have I... fallen in love with him?'
Because of silence, she refused.
Because of aloofness, she was proud.
Because of heartlessness, there was romantic love.
Precisely because she lacked companionship, beneath the facade of indifference and the memories, Kurumi yearned for the companionship she desired.
By the time Ryuya's figure barged into the girl's heart, it was too late for her to refuse.
"Bad guy, bad guy, bad guy, bad guy."
Remembering Ryuya's appearance, the emotions in his eyes, Kurumi, who hadn't been sleeping well, realized that at some point, she no longer dreamed of those terrifying spirits. All the horrors from her memories disappeared, replaced by an unchanging figure.
"Ah, how strange. Someone like me... deserves to have love?"
"Even the worst like me can feel the warmth of the world?"
Want to kill the Origin of Spirit? Change everything?
Want to defeat Ryuya, learn all about him?
No. These wishes were no longer what Kurumi truly wanted.
What she truly, what she could assert, what she actually desired was...
"Ryuya!"
At the end of time, beyond the far shore, all existences would die. In a world without recognition, the only figure that could remain was one.
Resolving to indulge recklessly for one day, Kurumi promised herself she only needed this day, this night's warmth.
Once this day, belonging to her and not fate, passed, she would regain her composure and set foot again on the shining path of the future.
For this purpose, after all the beautiful things ended, she would leave Ryuya alone and continue her solitary path.
Holding this steadfast belief, what Kurumi didn't anticipate was actually...