"Wait—"
Sora suddenly remembered something important and looked at Angel-sama:
"Is Time Reversal an active or passive skill?"
If it triggered passively, wouldn't it mean every future kiss would reverse time, making it impossible to ever reach the reality of the kiss?
That side effect would be too terrible!
"Eh?"
Mahiru blinked her bright eyes, quickly understanding what Sora meant. Her face turned red instantly, and she looked down at her toes, saying shamefully:
"Like Time Stop, it is an active ability..."
"That is good."
Hearing this, Sora felt relieved.
Since it was an active skill, at least he didn't have to worry about every kiss resulting in a time reversal.
But then again... for such an exaggerated ability like Time Reversal, could there really be no side effects at all?
Even though Angel-sama seemed normal right now, Sora still couldn't be completely at ease.
"If your body feels unwell, tell me immediately, Mahiru." Sora earnestly reminded her. "Don't be shy."
"Okay." Mahiru nodded slightly.
"Sora-kun can rest assured."
"..."
A few minutes later.
The roller coaster slowly came to a halt.
"So scary~"
Anna walked off the ride full of enthusiasm. She claimed to be scared, but the smile on her face was super bright:
"After a roller coaster ride, all my worries really have been forgotten."
In contrast, Kuroneko beside her had a pale face and teary eyes. Her legs were shaking as she got off.
"I... I am going to the restroom…" [bruh, are you leaaking too?]
Gokou Ruri sniffled, stating she wanted to go to the restroom to calm down.
"You worked hard, Ruri." Mahiru's voice was gentle.
"Let's all go together."
So, led by Anna, the group headed to the restroom again.
Splash.
Sora washed his hands, turned off the faucet, and walked outside the restroom to wait silently for the others.
"...Hello, could you help us take a photo?"
Two blonde gyarus walked up, using the excuse of a photo to strike up a conversation.
Izumi Sora: "..."
An incredibly familiar sense of deja vu hit him, making Sora's mood quite subtle.
After the time reversal, the things that had happened were indeed happening again.
However, whereas Sora had chosen to help in the previous world, he declined straightforwardly this time.
"I am sorry." Sora responded politely, his tone courteous but distant.
"I don't know how to take photos. I always make people look super ugly."
"Eh?"
The smiles on the two girls' faces instantly froze.
A boy who can't take photos is clearly a minus.
"I am very good at taking photos... how about I guide you?"
One of the gyarus wearing a choker refused to give up, clearly interested in Sora.
Just as Sora was about to refuse, a soft call rang out from the side.
"Sora-kun."
The call fell as Angel-sama, with her waist-length hair, clutched her skirt with a blushing face. She walked over cautiously and shielded him behind her. Her caramel-colored bright eyes looked at the two girls with a serious expression:
"Excuse me, what business do you have with Sora-kun?"
"Oh, sorry, we just wanted a photo..."
The two blonde gyarus acted just as they had before the time reversal, lacking the courage to challenge an angel with their mortal forms. They turned and left in a hurry.
"Phew~ good thing I came out in time."
Mahiru let out a soft sigh of relief. She tilted her pretty face up, her bright eyes fixed on Sora, and said softly:
"When you are out, Sora-kun must protect yourself. Don't be tricked and led away."
Izumi Sora: "..."
Wait, what is going on?
Why did you say the exact same lines again?
I clearly explained it to you on the way to the convenience store earlier.
"Something is wrong."
Sora shook his head rapidly. Looking at the blushing Angel-sama clutching her skirt in front of him, his expression turned subtle.
The current Angel-sama's tone and expression were very strange. They were exactly the same as they were before the time reversal... was she trying to play a prank?
But Mahiru was not the type to play pranks...
"Sora-kun's gaze is strange." Mahiru clutched her skirt nervously. Her face was red, and her eyes wandered as she took half a step back.
"P-Please do not keep staring at me."
Looking at the blushing, shameful Angel-sama before him, Sora's expression became even more subtle. A bold guess surfaced in his mind.
Is the Mahiru in front of him... really the Angel-sama he knew?
To be precise, is she the "Post-Reversal Mahiru"?
Whether it was the words just now or the current expression and tone, they were clearly from the "Pre-Reversal Mahiru."
Sora's mind raced. He took a deep breath and suddenly asked in a low voice:
"Mahiru, did we just ride the roller coaster?"
After the time reversal, the biggest difference between the two Mahirus was the roller coaster.
"Sora-kun is so strange..." Mahiru tilted her head, looking over in confusion, and responded softly, "Didn't we just finish riding the roller coaster? Ruri and I were in the front row, and you and Anna were in the back... are you feeling unwell, Sora-kun?"
"My body is fine." Hearing that, Sora pressed his hand to his brow.
"The world has a problem now."
"Eh?"
Mahiru tilted her pretty face up, looking at him with a cute, dazed expression.
Sora was now ninety percent sure that the Angel-sama in front of him was the "Pre-Reversal Mahiru."
The remaining ten percent could be verified by lifting her skirt.
Given Angel-sama's shy personality, even if she were playing a prank, she wouldn't come out "commando."
So, if the space under the skirt was empty, it was the Pre-Reversal Mahiru.
If it wasn't empty, it was the Post-Reversal Mahiru...
"A good idea... but I would definitely get hit."
Sora regretfully abandoned the urge to verify the truth. He pressed his hand to his brow and thought seriously.
"If this is the Pre-Reversal Mahiru, where is the Post-Reversal Mahiru?"
"Still in the restroom?"
"Or... has Mahiru's memory been reset?"
"..."
There were too many thoughts, and Sora couldn't figure it out for a moment. He simply took out his phone and sent a message to Mahiru.
"Mahiru, are you in the restroom?"
The message was quickly read.
The Mahiru in front of him took her phone out of her bag. Seeing the message on the screen, her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly:
"I am clearly right in front of Sora-kun. Why send such a message... has Sora-kun encountered something strange?"
At the same time.
A message quietly popped up on Sora's phone.
Shiina Mahiru: "Still in the restroom, I will come out with Anna in a bit."
"..."
Sora silently raised his gaze and looked at the Angel-sama in front of him:
"Mahiru-sama, do you happen to have a long-lost twin sister?"
"Of course not." The Pre-Reversal Mahiru looked at him with worried eyes.
"Since we came out, Sora-kun has been acting strangely... should we go to the hospital?"
"Not the hospital." Sora put his hands in his pockets.
"The one with the problem is not me, but the world."