Shichen lay on a large bed, staring blankly at an unfamiliar ceiling.
Two and a half minutes later, he turned his head to the left. The woman there had messy silver-white hair plastered wetly to her forehead and cheeks. Her eyes were half-closed, and the dark circles beneath them were heavy. Her breathing was a little rough. Sweat beaded across her lean yet mature, attractive face—she looked exhausted, yet the corners of her lips were faintly raised.
Shichen watched her for a moment, then turned his head to the right. Another woman lay flat on her back.
She also had silver-white hair, but hers was soft and smooth, the kind that looked meticulously cared for. It spread across the bed like a blooming lotus—brilliant, pure.
Her breathing was just as ragged, and her face had a light sheen where sweat caught the light. She looked just as tired, but her cherry-blossom-pretty lips were gently pressed together, her smile even more obvious.
Compared to the woman on the left, the one on the right looked younger—like a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl.
But their faces were extremely similar. There wasn't much difference beyond one looking fully grown and the other not.
They didn't look like mother and daughter—more like sisters.
Yet in truth, they were the same person.
When Reine Murasame brought Shichen here, Mio followed as well.
At first she was a blur of mosaic static, but there was no need to hide anymore. The distortion vanished, revealing the face Shichen knew.
A simple, plain dress. Dazzling silver-white hair. A long-awaited expression. The instant he saw her, Shichen felt like he'd been thrown back thirty years.
Then Mio didn't waste a single word—she and Reine shoved him onto the bed together, ganging up on him two-on-one.
Shichen didn't resist at all. He owed them too much. All he could do was let them have their way.
He was passive… but he was happy, too.
He'd never been "bullied" by two people at once—especially not by two halves of the same person.
Mio and Reine Murasame weren't clones or projections. They were truly split into two, each acting independently.
One stayed by Kotori's side, waiting for Shichen to appear. The other moved freely, hiding her identity and doing what she needed to do.
And the two of them shared memories.
The First Spirit—the god of this world—could do that naturally.
Shichen just hadn't expected he'd get to experience them "together." If anything, the thirty years of searching and waiting had pushed Mio to the edge.
This time, Shichen wasn't going to take any precautions. He wanted to make it up to her properly. Since she wanted a child as compensation, then he would give her exactly that.
It might be early for him to have children, but… it wasn't something he couldn't accept.
Because he truly owed her.
With Mio's power—her identity—having a child should be easy if she wanted it.
Shichen also understood why "she" had been so jealous of Mio.
He didn't want children yet, but now—because of guilt—Mio would be the first to have one.
If someone got there first, of course the jealousy would be intense.
Had "she" predicted this from the start?
"Shichen…"
After the afterglow faded, Mio recovered first. She rolled over to face him, hugged his arm, and pressed close enough to squeeze him with no space between them.
"Mio… I'm sorry," Shichen said, sincerely.
He hadn't had time to apologize while the two of them were "bullying" him—nor would it have been the right moment.
"Shichen… you didn't abandon me, did you?" Mio asked softly, meeting his eyes.
"Of course not. I love you—how could I ever abandon you?" Shichen turned to face her, his other hand stroking her cheek.
"Good." Mio smiled.
"...You don't blame me?" Shichen couldn't help asking as he watched her pure, childlike smile.
"I don't." Mio shook her head, still smiling.
"Why?"
"Because you didn't abandon me, and we've reunited now." Mio's explanation was simple—and completely satisfied.
"But… I disappeared back then, and you waited thirty years…"
"It's fine." Mio lifted a hand and pressed it over his mouth, stopping him.
Shichen looked at her, confused.
"Shichen, you must have been forced. I believe you. And we can stay together forever from now on, right? If that's the case, then it was just a thirty-year detour—nothing more." Mio said it gently, like she was comforting him… even though she was the one who should've been comforted.
Had thirty years made her grow into someone like this?
Shichen took her hand away and shook his head. "Forced or not, the fact remains: you endured thirty years of loneliness by yourself. How can you not blame me?"
"Because you were forced."
"…Then what if it was my fault—my choice?"
"Then there was a reason, wasn't there? If there was a reason, it's fine." Mio smiled softly.
"Mio… you're too gentle." Shichen tightened his grip around her wrist, guilt flooding him.
"Because I want to be with you forever. As long as I can do that, I don't care about anything else." Mio said it plainly.
"Forever together… We will be. I promise." Shichen said.
"Mm!" Mio nodded hard.
"Mm…"
Just then, a faint murmur came from behind Shichen.
He turned his head and saw Reine Murasame rolling over toward him, pressing close and wrapping her arms around him again—still half-asleep.
The expression on her face looked… almost happy.
The softness against his back was oddly comforting. Shichen realized Reine felt the same as Mio—despite Reine being the "adult" version of Mio.
Did she not "develop" any further?
Maybe her form was fixed at birth.
For a god, that was possible—though if she wanted to, she could change herself.
"Reine hasn't slept properly in a long time." Mio said quietly.
"Yeah. Those dark circles are brutal."
"Whose fault do you think that is?" Mio pouted.
"I'm sorry…"
"Hmph. I forgive you."
"Mio really is generous." Shichen sighed, then asked curiously, "But… you two are the same person, aren't you?"
"We're one person, but we can still have different thoughts. You could call us two people and it wouldn't be wrong… and besides," Mio teased, "don't you like it when there are two?"
"…Mio, you've gotten mischievous." Shichen said, helpless.
"That's because you taught me." Mio replied.
"What? How is that on me?" Shichen denied instinctively.
"Kaguya and Yuzuru," Mio said.
"…." Shichen had no comeback.
Reine Murasame knew everything about him and the twins.
"Good thing I'm with Reine," Mio said with a hint of relief. "Otherwise I definitely couldn't handle it."
"…." Shichen was the one benefiting here. He genuinely didn't know what to say.
"Shichen, if you want, I don't have to merge back with Reine. We can stay like this and keep you company."
"…That's not something you need to do just for me." Shichen said stiffly, trying to sound restrained.
"Really? Then what if I split off one more?"
"…No need." Shichen nearly caved.
"Aw. I thought you'd like that." Mio said with exaggerated disappointment.
"…."
Did he just miss out on something wonderful?
"Right—why did you split your power and give it to Tohka and the others?" Shichen quickly changed the subject.
If this kept going, he'd start having ideas again.
They'd already spent… no, not "wasted"—spent… a lot of time. Another round and it would be night again.
And they were still on school grounds.
"Because I want to be with you forever." Mio answered.
"What does that have to do with it?"
"You must have had a reason for disappearing so suddenly. Maybe you ran into something you couldn't solve. But you said I'm invincible in this world. If you had my power, you'd be able to handle anything, right?"
"So that's why…"
Mio really had been creating Spirits for his sake—doing so much for him… at the cost of many people suffering.
Shichen didn't care about strangers to begin with; of course he wouldn't blame Mio. If anything, he was deeply moved.
"So if you've absorbed Tohka and the others' blood and gained their abilities, you don't have to worry about anything anymore, right?" Mio asked anxiously.
"It wasn't that I ran into something I couldn't solve." Shichen said honestly. "Someone made me deal with my own issues first."
"Someone?"