"You mean, you want to ask her to use her ability to send you back to Amamiya City five years ago? You want to resolve Tobiichi Origami's matter?"
The group gathered in the living room, and Inaba Tsukiyo shared her idea of wanting to use Kurumi's power to return to the past.
Nia, being an otaku, spoke first. She had seen many works about time in various anime, and even though she didn't have time-traveling abilities, she had at least seen many similar things.
"Changing the past can lead to many things, you know. Perhaps the future will completely change because of your actions, or perhaps you won't be able to change the future at all, and your actions will only create another ordinary world. Do you know about the theory of parallel worlds?"
"I know, but if I don't try, then I won't even have a chance to change anything, right?"
She turned to look at Kurumi, or rather, Main Body Kurumi, who had been silent since the beginning.
Ever since she saw Clone Kurumi living here, her gaze had been fixed on her, looking at her with complicated eyes.
Noticing everyone's gaze on her, Kurumi lightly coughed a few times and nodded.
"The power of my Angel—Zafkiel, the power of its final bullet—'Twelfth Bullet,' can indeed send people back to the past."
Kurumi is a Spirit of Time, possessing the ability to manipulate time. Her Angel, Zafkiel, can manifest each time-related ability through the firing of a bullet.
Among her twelve time-related abilities, the last one, and one of the most powerful, is the power of the Twelfth Bullet—Time Reversal, the ability to return to the past.
"Although the 'Twelfth Bullet' can indeed send someone back to the past, this ability also consumes a vast amount of time. If Tsukiyo-chan hadn't already paid me enough time beforehand, I wouldn't have wanted to use this ability."
"Paid you enough time? Tsukiyo-chan. Could it be that you…"
Nia frowned. She already knew from her own Kurumi that using abilities required Kurumi to expend her stored time.
If Inaba Tsukiyo had paid Kurumi enough time to go back five years, how much time had she herself spent?
Facing their worried gazes, Inaba Tsukiyo shook her head nonchalantly.
"It's fine. I have more time than you can imagine. Even I don't know how much time I truly possess. It sounds a bit ridiculous, but I am someone who once resented time."
In the past, during countless sleepless nights, she had enough time, enough of the curse it brought her, enough of the pain it inflicted.
Everyone didn't understand what Inaba Tsukiyo meant, but they instinctively sensed complex factors involved and stopped asking questions.
In a relatively spacious area of the living room, Kurumi and Inaba Tsukiyo stood together. Kurumi changed into her Astral Dress, holding two antique flintlock pistols.
At the same time, behind Kurumi, there was a giant clock face. The hands on that giant clock face pointed to different positions depending on the ability being used. This time, the hands pointed to the topmost position.
"Well then, on your upcoming journey, I wish you success in completing your mission, Tsukiyo-chan."
Kurumi raised the pistol in her hand above her head, aiming at the twelve o'clock position.
"Zafkiel—Twelfth Bullet!"
Accompanying Kurumi's incantation, the clock behind her trembled violently, emitting an unprecedentedly strong light.
As this strong light flashed, a large number of shadows appeared on the numbers and poured into Kurumi's pistol. Simultaneously, Kurumi's spiritual power also flowed into the pistol.
This sight made Inaba Tsukiyo frown. It seemed that using this ability not only consumed Kurumi's stored time but also her spiritual power.
After preparation, Kurumi aimed the rifle in her hand at Inaba Tsukiyo and pulled the trigger.
Without resistance, the black bullet struck Inaba Tsukiyo's body. The moment it hit, the space around Inaba Tsukiyo began to twist continuously.
As her body twisted, Inaba Tsukiyo gradually entered a black hole-like space, disappearing at an extremely fast speed.
After Inaba Tsukiyo disappeared, the after-effects of using the ability appeared. Kurumi swayed with some difficulty. If Clone Kurumi hadn't supported her from behind, she would probably have fallen to the ground.
"Are you alright?"
Clone Kurumi asked with some concern. It was her first time seeing Original Body look so exhausted. It seemed the consumption of using the Twelfth Bullet far exceeded her imagination.
"Just a little tired, nothing too serious."
Kurumi calmed her breathing, adjusted her clothes and hair, then, supported by Clone Kurumi, sat down on the sofa.
The Amamiya City fire five years ago occurred on August 3rd, but Inaba Tsukiyo did not ask Kurumi to send her to that day. Instead, she asked her to send herself to the day before the fire, which was August 2nd.
'What exactly do you want to do, Tsukiyo-chan? I hope you can complete your mission. If you can do it, then it means I can also do what I want to do.'
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