Dual Existence, the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, the Mystic Eyes of Distortion, the Unified Language, the Origin Awakener of 'Consumption,' and Clairvoyance.
The above are the... supernatural abilities possessed by the characters appearing in the *Garden of Sinners*.
Among them, if one excludes the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, which must be prioritized above all else... the Mystic Eyes of Distortion are already halfway secured. I have already removed the primary cause of her suffering, and as long as I rescue her from her abusive household at the right time, her Mystic Eyes of Distortion should stabilize on their own.
The Unified Language might be a bit of a headache, but according to the settings, Satsuki Kurogiri is a 'completely harmless human' who won't approach me first unless I attack him. Of course, if he realizes I am a Connected One to the Root, he might approach me for the sake of his memories... but that is a problem for later.
"So, you want me to create a new body for this girl?"
"Her name is Kirie Fujo. Her entire body is riddled with tumors; she's practically a corpse on the verge of total collapse."
"...I truly don't understand you. Honestly, you know it too, don't you? Saving her won't be of any help, and while it's coming out of the credits I owe you, it's still money being thrown away."
Touko Aozaki, who was thoroughly rational regarding the money she earned, pressed me for an answer. I replied to her question with a smirk.
"So, are you going to make it or not?"
"...You're really going to pay for this reckless altruism one day."
"Get in line."
There are probably more than a few people sharpening their blades to kill me already... Hmm, should I start the list with Goetia?
At any rate, the decisive cause of Kirie Fujo's awakening as a Dual Existence and her subsequent attacks on people... was her diseased physical body. Because she was ill, she dreamed of 'another self' that could float and fly through the outside world, and Souren Araya approached her to bestow that Dual Existence.
No matter how prestigious the Fujo Group used to be as an exorcist family and a significant corporation, they had long since gone bankrupt, and the Fujo clan had scattered to the winds.
"He certainly... laid down some Bounded Fields around the hospital."
Mikiya Kokutou, born with the talent for 'finding,' often visited the hospitalized Shiki Ryougi, and Kirie Fujo had fallen completely in love with him. The problem was that the Mikiya she loved was solely devoted to Shiki, leading Kirie to force him into a coma to possess him. Naturally, Shiki Ryougi wouldn't let that slide... In the end, her Dual Existence would have been extinguished by Shiki, and Kirie would have committed suicide by jumping from a building to regain a sense of living through the sensation of death.
And Souren Araya... had taken various measures to keep her alive until then, using her as a catalyst to awaken Shiki Ryougi.
He posed as a friend of Kirie Fujo's father to pay her hospital bills... he used various Bounded Fields and Magecraft to sustain her life... and he set up barriers to ensure no fool would discover her first.
"Though such things are powerless before the Seal Absorption."
I could block off access to the hospital room using only the human-repelling Rune Magecraft I learned roughly from Alice. It was impossible for her to block my approach with a mere suggestion ability derived from her Dual Existence. To begin with... she wasn't someone who could stop me even if she tried.
She frantically moved in front of me, screaming to keep me away from her physical body, but her voice didn't reach me, and her spiritual form could not breach my Shinra Tensei.
"I'm just here to treat you, so move aside for a moment."
When the balance between the soul and the physical vessel is lost, the body collapses.
Tomoe Enjou's body began to break down the moment a gap appeared between his soul and the body he recognized as his own. Touko Aozaki is simply a madwoman for taking pride in her immortality by transmitting 'only' her memories to other puppets without even feeling that sense of dissonance.
Naturally, Kirie Fujo was just an ordinary person inheriting exorcist blood, aside from the Dual Existence. It was certain she wouldn't be able to withstand even a slight deviation between soul and body.
"A Dual Existence is another 'you.' If I were to extract only the soul from your physical body, which is already on the verge of breaking down from disease, and move it to a different vessel... you would surely self-destruct, unable to endure the gap between a healthy body and a diseased soul. However, you already possess another, healthy 'memory,' don't you?"
Having already received the Dual Existence, she was a 'healthy person' who could float and roam through the air at will, and she enjoyed gazing at the sky she longed for.
Therefore, she was a dualistic being: hating her diseased body while simultaneously relishing freedom in the void.
"More importantly, if I leave you be, it's clear that terrible things will happen."
In the original timeline, she used suggestion to give dozens of high school girls the illusion that they could fly, leading them to jump from buildings to their deaths while trying to imitate flight.
She was one of Araya's pawns, a sort of stimulant used to awaken Ryougi... but the problem was her killing innocent civilians.
"Your wish is to feel the reality of life, isn't it? I'll give you something more useful... so feel it for yourself."
[Human Path: Soul Extraction]
* * * * *
Kirie Fujo, whose soul had settled into the new 'puppet vessel' laid on the floor, burst into tears as soon as she saw her limbs moving perfectly.
The Dual Existence that had been floating in the void vanished immediately the moment she opened her new eyes, only to reappear when she closed them again.
"...What do you intend to do with me?"
"First, we need to create a new identity for you. The Fujo family is already bankrupt; if it's known that you're alive, debt collectors will swarm you relentlessly."
The best part about saving her was that I could gain a connection that would prioritize obeying my words, all without spending a single cent of my own.
Of course, there might be issues like Souren Araya noticing my interference in the process... but what of it? Araya is a man who needs to die anyway, and he's someone I can definitely take down as long as Touko Aozaki and Shiki Ryougi join forces with me.
"Anyway, in your Dual Existence state, you were just screaming, so you didn't even introduce yourself... Nice to meet you, Ms. Kirie Fujo. For now, I am your temporary guardian and... well, at the same time, your debt collector, Nasu Kinoko."
"Mushroom-Sensei... surely that's a pseudonym?"
"Of course. Oh, and the reason I'm a debt collector is that there was a cost involved in saving you. Creating that new body and... moving the soul altogether costs about 80 million yen."
"...The reason you're bothering to tell me that is because there's a way to pay it back, right? And you probably need my Dual Existence."
"Bingo! Conversations with people who understand are always so much easier... Anyway, what I want is for you and that Dual Existence of yours to be useful to my business."
Our relationship was strictly one of superior and subordinate, and she didn't seem particularly inclined to refuse my words.
After all, she must have realized that if I intended to simply exploit her, I would have done something far worse by now.
"First, just to be sure, I'll ask. Do you know about 'Magecraft'?"
"...I know things like pulling a pigeon out of a hat... things like that."
"Well, it's not really like that... To put it simply, things like your Dual Existence, suggestion abilities, or the fireballs you see in movies! That sort of thing."
"I roughly understand the image. Is the work related to that?"
"No, not right now. First, help me with a few things I'm doing... and once the organization is complete, you can join the staff there."
Whatever else happens, the welfare of the Chaldea staff will be top-notch.
Naturally. With the 'Einzberns' as supporters, how could we ever be short on funds?
"First, once my work in this city is done... after you help me for a while, I'd like you to follow my instructions when that organization is completed."
"Understood."
"Oh, and I'll pay you a salary, of course. Since the debt you owe me is roughly 80 million... I'll consider it paid off if you work for me for 10 years."
"Ten years..."
"Of course, the debt repayment is the price for ten years of labor, but I'll pay your wages properly during that time. There will be performance bonuses too, and if things go well, I might even clear the debt sooner."
"Is it dangerous work?"
I laughed at her reasonable question.
"Ms. Fujo, you don't actually think work in a fantasy-like world involving 'Dual Existences' wouldn't be dangerous, do you?"
"...I suppose not."
"We'll write up the contract later... for now, get inside!"
I opened the gate to the Naraka Path, and she stepped into the massive mouth of the King of Hell without much suspicion.
After unsummoning the Naraka Path, I turned off her still-functioning EKG monitor and threw myself out of the window, leaving behind the truly deceased body of Kirie Fujo.
"...Well, that's one person secured."
The Dual Existence from *Overlooking View* allows for reconnaissance that no one can detect, except those with spiritual sight. Moreover, no matter how much spiritual sight one possesses, unless it's an attack like a soul-level curse or the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, one cannot damage the original body through the Dual Existence. It is the ultimate ability for a reconnaissance agent.
Of course, it might not be very useful in Chaldea itself, and she might just be deployed as a regular staff member to keep an eye on Marisbury or others... but at least until then, she will certainly be helpful in monitoring the other people I have to deal with.
"Now, how will you move? Souren Araya."
Until Shiki Ryougi awakens... D-minus 30 days.