Picking up an apple from the table, Fujino felt a bit parched from what she was seeing.
She was wondering if she should teleport in and give Tokisaki Yume a surprise attack.
But considering Little Kurumi was right there, she could only discard that tempting thought.
She looked away. Since she couldn't launch an attack, it was better not to watch, otherwise she would be the one suffering.
After waiting around in the living room for a few boring minutes, Fujino finally heard the sound of the bathroom door opening.
Tokisaki Yume and Little Kurumi were wrapped only in large bath towels. Their snow-white, slightly flushed shoulders were exposed, and their hair, still damp with water droplets, hung loose behind them.
"Fujino?"
"Sister Fujino?"
Seeing the person in the living room, both were startled, but they sighed in relief once they saw it was Fujino.
In particular, when Little Kurumi saw it was Fujino, she ran straight to her, wrapping her small arms around Fujino's legs. She looked up, blinking her cute, large eyes, and asked curiously, "Sister Fujino, why are you here?"
"To see my cute Little Kurumi." Ignoring the damp hair, Fujino reached out and stroked Little Kurumi's head with a smile.
Gentle heat radiated from her palm.
Little Kurumi was surprised to find her head felt warm, and from the corner of her eye, she saw the water droplets on her hair vanish.
"How is it, Little Kurumi? Amazing, right?" Fujino said playfully. She reached under Little Kurumi's arms, lifted her up, and placed her in her lap.
Fujino looked at the stunned Tokisaki Yume and said softly, "Yume, come over here."
Hearing Fujino's intimate address, Tokisaki Yume's cheeks, already flushed from the bath, became even more enticing.
After a moment's hesitation, Tokisaki Yume walked over to Fujino's side.
Fujino must be here for a reason, Yume thought.
But she didn't know what it was.
However, seeing Fujino expose her special abilities in front of Little Kurumi like this, Yume felt it was definitely no small matter.
Yume only hoped it wouldn't hurt Little Kurumi. To her, Little Kurumi was the only person she wanted to protect now—though she now had to add Fujino, who had forcefully entered her life.
"Little Kurumi, I'll give you a gift," Fujino said, looking down at the girl in her lap.
"A gift? Didn't Sister Fujino already give me one?" The gift Little Kurumi meant was the dress Fujino gave her this morning. She liked it very much; it was the best gift she had ever received.
"Not that one, it's a better little thing." Fujino smiled and patted Little Kurumi's head, then looked at Tokisaki Yume. Noticing Yume's nervous gaze, Fujino reached out and quietly took Yume's hand, giving it a slight squeeze to tell her not to be nervous.
Perhaps it worked, as Yume's gaze calmed a bit, though her slightly bitten lip showed she hadn't completely settled down.
Fujino didn't say anything more. She could understand Yume's feelings; all she wanted was for Little Kurumi not to be harmed, and on this point, Fujino was in agreement with her.
Otherwise, Fujino wouldn't have abandoned her original plan and chosen to let Little Kurumi become a Spirit. This way, Little Kurumi wouldn't have to experience the nightmare she was originally destined for.
A Sephira Crystal glowing with a strange luster appeared in Fujino's hand.
At that moment, Little Kurumi's gaze was instantly drawn to the Sephira Crystal in Fujino's hand, and the crystal itself trembled slightly in Fujino's grasp.
Little Kurumi really is a perfect match for this Sephira Crystal, Fujino thought to herself.
Little Kurumi's compatibility with this Sephira Crystal was indeed beyond Fujino's expectations, but this was for the better. It would make the fusion between Little Kurumi and the crystal much simpler—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was as easy as drinking water.
"What is this?!" Yume asked, her gaze also drawn to the Sephira Crystal in Fujino's hand.
To think such a thing would happen. Fujino looked with a strange expression at Yume, who was attracted by the Sephira Crystal. The crystal was actually reacting to Yume as well. It was reacting to two people at once, which meant that not only could Little Kurumi become a Spirit, but Yume could too. However, Yume's compatibility with the Sephira Crystal wasn't as high as Little Kurumi's—it was even a bit lower than Mukuro's—but becoming a Spirit would be no problem at all.
Was it because they were mother and daughter?
But since Yume could also react to the Sephira Crystal, Fujino's original plan had to undergo some changes.
For example, letting Tokisaki Yume become a Spirit too!
The Sephira Crystals Fujino possessed were replicated using Mio's power. Creating Spirits using these crystals, which were indistinguishable from the originals, was completely different from the method in the original story where Mio separated her own power to create crystals.
Because a separated power is unique; separating it means losing that ability unless it's taken back. It's worth mentioning that in the original story, even after separating several portions of her power, the girls who became Spirits were still no match for Mio even if they all attacked at once.
Mio didn't have two of the same power, but Fujino was different. As long as she wanted, she could create ten, a hundred, or ten thousand of these Sephira Crystals in an instant!
So, having two Spirits of Time was no problem at all for Fujino.
With that thought, another identical Sephira Crystal appeared in Fujino's hand.
"Let's try it!"
Without giving Little Kurumi and Tokisaki Yume time to react, Fujino's hands, each holding a Sephira Crystal, pressed them against the chests of Little Kurumi and Yume.
Two beams of brilliant light instantly erupted.
With a wave of her hand, Fujino manifested a barrier, enveloping the entire villa.
She didn't want anyone to disturb them.
The government-established AST Units were already formed. Although they used Realizers that were fifty generations behind those used by her subordinates at DEM, they still posed a certain threat to Spirits. It would be a hassle if they detected an abnormality here.
In Fujino's villa, Ann and Mukuro, who were snuggled together watching TV, both looked up toward the villa where Little Kurumi was.
As fellow Spirits, the two were very familiar with the fluctuations appearing in the villa. The barrier Fujino set up only blocked mechanical detection; it didn't work against Ann and Mukuro, which was also intentional on Fujino's part.
"Are those two Spirits?" Ann said in confusion. "And their auras are identical?"
"Wasn't there only Kurumi-chan?" Mukuro also had a look of confusion.
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